


Man on the Moon

by nishiki



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alcohol Withdrawal, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Big Brother Luther Hargreeves, Big Sibling Luther Hargreeves, Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Drug Withdrawal, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Good Brother Luther Hargreeves, Good Sibling Luther Hargreeves, Hurt Klaus Hargreeves, Hurt/Comfort, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Luther Hargreeves Has a Human Body, Luther helps Klaus, Mentions of Rape, Past Rape/Non-con, Protective Luther Hargreeves, Roadtrip, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Love, Withdrawal, mentions of past rape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2020-06-30 02:03:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 32,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19843270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nishiki/pseuds/nishiki
Summary: When Klaus and Luther are the only ones left at the house, Reginald orders Luther to kick out his own brother. However, what if Luther leaves with Klaus instead?Alternative ending to 'Monster'





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Monster](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19228465) by [nishiki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nishiki/pseuds/nishiki). 



> So, this is my alternative take on the ending of my story 'Monster'. The 'what if Luther had left with Klaus instead' take on it.

»Luther!« Klaus screamed through the locked door before his fists started slamming against the wood and the glass. »Luther, please! Please, I promise you I get better!« He couldn't take this. Hearing Klaus cry like this, hearing how desperate he was, was breaking his heart into a million tiny pieces. He didn't walk away, though. He stayed at the door, his back pressed against it while his brother pounded the door. 

And there he was. His father was standing on the stairs to the entrance hall, one hand resting on the handrail, his pocket watch in the other studying it with great caution. Almost, Luther hoped that his father would tell him to open the door and allow Klaus back inside. He waited for the old man to tell him that he had passed the test and could take his brother back inside and help him get better. Instead, the old man gave him one long look before turning back around and marching up the stairs. Klaus, on the other side of that door, was oblivious to all of this. 

He could almost see how he was leaning his forehead against the cold glass of the door as he sobbed violent little sobs now. As Luther finally walked away, he could still hear his brother’s pleas. They would haunt him for the rest of his life. He was sure of that. He felt like a monster and, sure enough, just a few years later, he would see a monster in the mirror too. 

It had been only the two of them left. Now he was alone. A monster in a big dusty old house. Time seemed to tick on endlessly while his brother was hammering against the door. His eyes locked onto the grandfather clock next to the staircase. It was his deepest wish to just open the door and let his brother back in - maybe to hide him somewhere in the house and help him get better. He knew, though, that his father would probably kick him outright with Klaus if he would ever dare to go against his rules. Behind him, on the other side of that door, Klaus gave up at last.

And then it clicked in him. 

He grabbed his coat and one of Klaus’ spare coats from the coat rag next to the door, turned away from the staircase and opened the door. The icy wind from outside hit him right in the face. He found his brother sitting on the snow-covered steps in front of him and as he stepped out, a deep shout echoed loudly in the mansion. 

»Number One!« Luther slammed the door behind him and all but jumped down the three steps. In his confusion, Klaus seemed unable to detect the urgency in his brother’s movements and so, Luther pulled him up without thinking. 

Klaus followed - silent for once - as Luther dragged him along by his hand without doing so much as looking back. His heart was actually racing now, hammering against his ribs as he ran down the street with his brother in tow. There seemed to be no reason for blind panic like this and yet that was all that Luther was actually able to feel. Not because he thought his father might run after him but because he had never even considered leaving the house until now. He had never considered running away.

And now … now that was exactly what he was doing. He was running down the street of the slowly waking city under the light of the early morning sun as the sky was still magenta and orange and other people - normal people - were leaving their houses to go to work or to go for a run. The only things he had with him, were his brother’s hand in his own and two coats underneath his arm.

»Luther!« Klaus gasped from behind him. »Lu! I have to stop - Please, I can't go any further.« 

They stopped only as they were already two blocks away from their house and only then Luther let go of his brother’s hand as well. Klaus almost immediately bent in half, putting his hands on his knees to brace himself just the slightest bit. It sounded almost painful as he tried to suck in air. How could he have forgotten about his brother’s injuries? A fine leader he was. Out of instinct, Luther put Klaus’ spare coat around his brother’s narrow shoulders and slipped into his own. At least he had his wallet with him.

Now that he was looking at Klaus, in the morning light, his brother looked even worse than he had thought before at the mansion. That he had even made it this far with Luther surprised him. Now, however, his brother seemed unable to make one more step. So, without wasting another thought, Luther waved down a cab as he saw one approach from further down the street. The cab held next to the two brothers and barely splashed the wet snowy mush at Luther’s boots. 

»Where are we going?« Klaus mumbled as Luther helped him into the cab and climbed in behind his brother. 

»The motel on Calhoon, please.« He directed at the driver who only looked at them with a puzzled little expression through the rearview mirror. 

»How do you know that motel?« Klaus almost snickered. »It’s a literal shithole. You know, the kind where whores go with their customers.« 

»Just because I don't get out much does not mean I don't know where everything is, right? Don't forget, Dad made me study streetmaps since we were four.« Luther replied with a small smile that should only serve to play down how nervous he was. He knew what kind of seedy motel it was that they were headed at now. Still, it was the cheapest place he could think of and surely a place his father would not expect him to go to. 

Now that this was out of the way, Luther used the drive to the motel to get a better look at his brother’s face, ignoring the looks from the driver every time they held at a red light or a stop sign. The motel he had chosen was not all too far away from the mansion and yet the drive seemed to take hours. 

He quickly paid the driver as he stopped in the empty parking lot of the seedy motel and then he helped his brother out of the car carefully. Getting a room for at least one night was easy enough. He paid upfront for the night and then helped his brother up the stairs to room number 16. Almost he would have carried Klaus up the stairs but refrained from doing so last minute. Despite what would be easy to think about Klaus, his brother was not a fan of being treated like a china doll. It became obvious though that he wouldn't have been able to go on a minute longer as they finally reached the room. The moment Luther had stepped in behind Klaus, his brother was on the ground, passed out cold. 

Transporting Klaus from the ground to the bed was not a hard thing to do. He was easy to be picked up, easy to be deposited on the bed because the kid weighed nothing at all it seemed. His brother was like a skeleton and that suspicion confirmed itself only as Luther started peeling the thin moist clothes from his brother’s body. Originally, he had not planned on undressing Klaus at all. It seemed weird to him after they had never had that close of a bond. As he looked at him laying on the bed like this in the dirty clothes he was wearing, however, he couldn't just leave him like this. A part of him wished he had. He was not prepared for what was beneath the fabric. 

He had seen glimpses of it so far. Bruising here and there, yes. Seeing the full extent was something very different though. His brother looked as if someone had tried to rip him to shreds. There seemed to be not an inch of his body to be untouched by bruises. As Luther had Klaus naked except for his boxer briefs, his breathing got stuck in his throat. In fact, Luther had suddenly forgotten how to breathe at all. He was a fish out of its fishbowl and had no clue how to move on from here.

Even to someone who had grown up so sheltered in many regards, it became clear what had happened to Klaus last night. It was evident in the hand-shaped bruises on his hips and his upper arms. It was evident in his scraped up cheek and the bruises around his jaw. It was evident in the blood that was coated on his thighs. 

He felt his stomach turn at the realization. Not just because it suddenly dawned on him that his brother had been raped but because he could have died out there and he would not have been able to do anything to help him. He had been sitting in that huge house, waiting for his brother’s return to kick him out while Klaus had gone through hell. There was a part of him, frightened to ask the question, that wondered what might have happened to Klaus if he had followed his father's orders without a second thought. Where would Klaus be now if he had not left with him?

The possible outcomes seemed endless yet all ending the same way. 

Luther had never wanted anything more than being a good brother, a good leader and to make his father proud. In trying to achieve the latter, however, he had forgotten completely about the other two things on his list. 

For the longest while, Luther just sat there, unable to move or do anything at all. He was like a child suddenly, hoping that his mother would come to help. He wished Diego was here. Diego would know what to do. Diego had always known how to handle Klaus. And what if he would try to contact Number Two? He knew how to reach him. No, he thought. Diego had a life. His own life. He had a girlfriend who was a cop in training. He was done with all of this. He was a boxer now. There was no doubt in his mind that Diego would come flying if he would call and tell him what had happened. It would be unfair to drag him down this road again, though. It had taken so much out of Diego to free himself not only from their father but also from Klaus. He had escaped. 

Suddenly, so many things of the past seemed to make sense. 

Had Diego really left so dramatically because of the drugs and because he couldn't stand Klaus’ addiction anymore? Or had Klaus’ addiction been only a part of a bigger problem? Had Diego seen their brother like this before? And if so, how many times? He had seen the bruises on Klaus’ face and body time and time again ever since Klaus had started leaving the house at night. He had never thought much of it though. None of them, except Vanya, were strangers to bruises and cuts and minor injuries. 

Now, he thought, Klaus would have gone to Diego if some guy had beaten him to take what he wanted from him. And Diego would have helped Klaus to clean up and conceal it. What if Diego hadn't been able to stand all of this anymore? It hurt to see Klaus like this. And how many more times had Diego had to see him like this before he had finally had enough and left?

He didn't know how much time passed until Klaus stirred on the bed again and before his brother could freak out or jolt upright, Luther placed a warm hand on his chest. »Hey, it's okay.« He mumbled, taking in Klaus’ labored, panicked breathing and his wild eyes as he tried to look around and get an idea of where he was. »You’re safe. it's okay. W-We are at the motel … Do you … I can run you a bath. We have a bathtub.« 

He barely noticed the nod he got from Klaus and as he let go of Klaus, his brother sat up with a groan. Klaus seemed to regain his typical composure quickly enough but he could not quite fool Luther as he drove a hand through his curls and took in the state of undress he was currently in. Hell, he did not even seem concerned about it. 

»Geez, buy me dinner first before undressing me.« Klaus mocked but he could hear it in his tone of voice that all of this was not funny in the slightest to him. If Luther had not undressed him, Klaus would have kept the rape to himself but now Klaus knew that Luther knew and the awkwardness was so thick it could be cut with a knife.

»Your clothes were moist. I thought it was better this way.« He explained but didn't say anything about the rest as he instead turned to walk to the bathroom. Maybe he was a bit of a coward but so many things were racing through his mind right now that he did not quite know where to start. The bathroom was small and moldy but it had to suffice. After growing up in a house such as theirs it was certainly a step down for both of them. He ignored the dirt in the corners and the mold on the tiles. He just walked over to the tub and started to run a bath for his brother as if it was normal. Nothing was normal. Nothing would ever be normal again.

Not even fifteen minutes later, Klaus was sitting in the bathtub and Luther was awkwardly sitting next to the open bathroom door on the ground, his eyes on the door of the motel room as if it held any answers for any of them how to confront the situation at hand. Perhaps they didn't need to confront any of it. A part of him was afraid that there would soon be a knock at the door and their father on the other side with some kind of police entourage perhaps. He felt like a criminal sitting on the dirty carpet of the motel room with his brother behind him in the bathtub. 

No, not confronting it was not an option, was it? 

»What happened to you?« What a stupid question that was. He knew what had happened to Klaus and Klaus knew that he knew and all of this was just so pathetic and stupid. He was a coward. The biggest coward ever. 

»Nothing that hasn't happened before.« Came the dull response from his brother. 

How could he even be so nonchalant about it? How many times had this happened in the past without Luther realizing it? His brother had gone through hell and back again and again as it seemed and not once had Luther suspected a thing! He had been blind to it! Completely and utterly blind! He should have noticed. But he had been so concerned with his own little problems and with his endless desire of making their father proud. Klaus had not been important to him. He had started to treat him like a background item, some sort of ugly decoration that was best to be ignored. His father’s opinion of Klaus had started to taint his own opinion of his brother. He had allowed his father to poison him in this way. And for that, there was no one else to blame but him. 

»No big deal.« Klaus added after a while and even quieter than before.

»No big deal?« Luther echoed but he remained where he was. Diego would have already freaked out if his brother would have dared to say something like this to him. He, however, only balled his hands into trembling fists.»No big deal? Klaus, someone _raped_ you. Someone beat you up and left you there. You could have died! That is a huge deal!« 

There was a splashing sound behind him and as he turned to look over his shoulder, Klaus was sitting up straighter than before, holding onto the edge with white knuckles. His eyes, however, were directed at the wall right in front of him as if he was afraid to look at Luther. »Don't-« He stopped himself right there again before he took a deep breath to steady himself and forced himself to relax his posture ever so slightly. »Don't … say it like that. I was not- It was not like this.« 

It suddenly dawned on Luther that his brother couldn't even say the word. The realization of it was like a punch in the guts. He didn't know how to feel about this. It was not even that Klaus was too immature to grasp the truth about what had been done to him either. He was understanding what had happened to him. Saying the word, however, meant to acknowledge that it had happened and acknowledging it made it real and that would be painful - too painful perhaps. What could he even say to this? Could he say anything?

Instead of trying to find the right words, he allowed his head to fall back against the doorframe and closed his eyes. He had not slept the entire night, waiting for the return of his brother and now here he was in this seedy motel room with said brother. »What am I doing here?« He muttered to himself before he could stop the words. 

He should be home. He should have done as their father had ordered him to and now be home to go about his day. Yet, here he was because the realization of what his father was doing to him as well as to Klaus had finally clicked with him. To Reginald, each and every one of them was not much more than a lab rat. They were disposable. None of them mattered to Reginald Hargreeves. They called him dad but this could not be further from the truth. Reginald Hargreeves was in no sense of the word a father. And the seven of them were in no sense of the word siblings. The truth was, Sir Reginald did not care about them. And, for the longest time, Luther had been living under the illusion that he was different in the eyes of his father because he was Number One. 

He had to be different right? He had to be special. Now he realized that this couldn't be further from the truth. He was not special at all to his father. In fact, Luther decided, he was probably less special to his father than Vanya was. He had always been eager to please and followed every order like a well-trained dog and that was it. Vanya, at the very least, had a personality. He, on the other hand, was just his father’s puppet. He might as well be a robot like Grace. And what Reginald made him do to his own brother had not just been cruel to both of them but a test as well. He had wanted to see how much he could truly ask of Luther. He had wanted to see if Luther was ready to throw his own brother under the bus just because he said so. 

Had it not been for his father controlling every aspect of his personality, Luther would have left with Allison. They might have gotten together and would be happy now and Luther would not be forced to read stupid greeting cards where his sister talked about a guy named Patrick. 

»Yeah, kinda was asking myself the same question.« Klaus replied, seemingly happy to get the opportunity of changing the subject. »I mean … What now? What’s your plan, big guy?«

»I don't know.« Luther admitted quietly but turned his head again to look at Klaus behind him in the bathtub. »I guess … I guess I can't go back home now.« 

Klaus let out a small hum in response and leaned back in the tub. He stared at a stain on the ceiling right above his head. »Yeah … I know the feeling.« He whispered all but to himself. Even that gave Luther a small stab right between his ribs. 

How many times had he not seen his brother for days and never questioned it? How many times had Klaus been sleeping in the streets or someone’s apartment because he had felt like he could no longer return home? And what now? Should they stay together? Would Klaus meander off to do whatever it was he would be doing usually? The truth was, Luther was afraid of Klaus leaving him behind like this. He didn't know what he would do alone in this world. He would perhaps return home like a beaten dog and all of this would have been marked as a temper tantrum and nothing else. 

»I don't get it though, Lu.« Klaus spoke up once more and this time, as Luther looked over to him, Klaus was looking at him too. »Why did you … Why didn't you just let me go like the old man wanted you to?« 

Good question. He had to give him that. »I just … I couldn't stand the thought of what might happen to you then. How could I let you go when you were so badly injured?« 

»Well, dad certainly doesn't care about that.«

»But I do.« Luther shrugged. »I always cared. I just wasn't very good at showing it.« 

Silence fell over them as both of them just hung after their own thoughts for a little while. He listened to the soft splashing of the water whenever Klaus moved too much in the tub. It was oddly comforting as they sat like this. The two brothers who seemed the least connected of all the siblings. Polar opposites of each other. One obedient to a fault and the other rebellious just out of pure spite. He wondered if he should pressure Klaus more to talk about what had happened but then he decided against it. It was not his place, after all. This was for Klaus to decide whether or not he wanted to talk about anything that had happened. 

He was pulled from his thoughts as he heard Klaus get out of the tub and when he looked over his shoulder next, his brother had wrapped himself in a towel and sat down on the edge of the tub. He was clearly weak and so, Luther got up and walked over to him to sit down next to him. He was afraid. He really was. He had run away from home, left his father behind and went against his orders and now what? What was he supposed to do with his life now?

To his genuine surprise, Klaus leaned his head against his shoulder and his wet curls soaked the fabric of his shirt quickly. He didn't mind. He actually enjoyed having his brother close. The same brother that had been such a nuisance all his life and the same brother who had stayed with him the entire time even after everyone else had left them behind. As Klaus spoke up next, Luther was almost unsure if he was just imagining it. 

»How about we go see Allison?«

※※※※※※※

The only time when Luther had been allowed to leave the city was when they had traveled to Paris for a mission once. This seemed now a lifetime ago even though it was only a few years since it had happened. That was, however, before Ben had died and before Five had vanished. He had never left the city on his own, though, without his father or Pogo. Now he was with Klaus. He was not alone but it was a huge thing to do anyway. It was gargantuan, actually. And, as he sat down beside his brother in the greyhound bus, he thought that Klaus might feel the same way. 

The sun had not yet risen over the city as the bus took off. They had rested for a day at the motel, mainly to give Klaus some time to heal and then they had gathered things they might need, bought tickets and entered the bus. It seemed so easy now. It seemed not at all as if they were running away from home. Then again, they were adults, rights? They were not running away from home. They were just leaving. That was it. Leaving. Like normal adults would. 

And, like every normal adult, they now had to face an uncertain future together. Luther had used up almost all the money that he had had in his wallet. Now he had nothing more than a plastic bag with various snacks and water, the coat on his back and his trembling brother by his side. The trembling had started around three in the afternoon. The vomiting had followed soon after. Withdrawal for Klaus had hit earlier than usual this time around. He was miserable and weak and looked like a corpse. In the streets, people had made a point of avoiding the two brothers while Luther had only held him closer and closer the worse he was getting. 

Neither one of them was good at talking about stuff like this and yet, miraculously, they had come to an unspoken understanding that they were only doing this if Klaus would get clean. No longer could Luther deal with seeing his brother like this. No longer could Luther deal with having to worry about Klaus. He never wanted to see him like this ever again, knowing that someone had hurt his brother in such a cruel, awful way. 

He was afraid. There was no way around it. For once in his life, Luther Hargreeves had no purpose, no orders to follow, no routine to fall back on. He was alone with his brother. No longer a part of the Umbrella Academy. No longer a superhero. Just a dude who was traveling across the country with his junkie brother. It was terrifying. 

It started to snow as they drove across town line and Klaus huddled into his coat. He was leaning against the window, Luther acting as a barrier between his little brother and the rest of the people on the bus as it almost seemed. What if Allison wouldn't even want to see them? What if they were doing the wrong thing in going to her? What if he couldn't keep his brother away from the drugs? Neither one of them really had any plan or idea what they were in for. He could tell that Klaus was just as afraid as he was. He might be better of playing it down than Luther was but he could not fool him. They were leaving behind their old lives and their home and they only had each other now. 

However, as they left town and as the bus drove into the night, Luther relaxed in his seat and watched the street lamps pass them by like a myriad of stars. He was free. For the first time in his life, he was free. It was terrifying. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some wished for me to continue this story and I never quite knew if I wanted to or had enough ideas but, TADA, turns out I do! <3

The stench of puke filled his nostrils and made him cringe. Luther had always hated the smell of vomit or the sound when it splattered onto the ground or into a toilet bowl. The latter was, of course, much more pleasant to deal with later. However, it was probably much worse for Klaus, as his brother clutched the trashcan he was leaning over as for dear life while Luther couldn't do much more than awkwardly rub his back. The people who walked past the alley they were in shot them curious and utterly disgusted glances. 

The two stray Hargreeves’ boys had not even made it halfway across the country at this point and Luther was already running on fumes. The reason? Klaus. Klaus and his smell and his shivering and his puking and his irritableness. He was detoxing. He was going through withdrawal and that had to hurt like a bitch. At least that was what Klaus said but his brother Klaus was the type of guy who made a big show about a paper cut or a scraped knee too. 

The people on the bus they had taken to escape their father’s clutches had quickly made it clear that they didn't want the two brothers on there with them. He couldn't blame them. Not with Klaus looking like death warmed up twice and puking his guts out into some plastic bag that Luther had given him. Only three hours into their journey, the bus driver had kicked them off the bus. Now they were stranded with no means of transportation in a city they didn't know only three hours after entering the bus that should’ve delivered them to L.A. 

»We could take another bus.« Luther offered as Klaus slowly let go of the trashcan. He shook his head gently and that alone seemed to cause another wave of nausea to sweep through him as he quickly leaned back over the trashcan and let out another wave of puke. Right now, Luther wished that Diego would be here. Diego would know how to handle this situation. He would know what to do and how to keep Klaus from throwing up so much. 

»We’re gonna get kicked off again.« Klaus muttered as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve. Disgusting. »I know how that goes.« He sighed. »People don't like it when they have to share a space with a junkie that goes through withdrawals. You know … we could remedy that if you would-«

»No.« Luther frowned. »No drugs. You promised me, Klaus. I left everything behind to do this with you. I could have ignored you and leave you to fend for yourself. You owe it to me.«

»know, I know.« He sighed. »I know, big guy. It was worth a try, though. So what now?«

»I don't know.« Luther shrugged and took in Klaus’ appearance. He looked disheveled and weak. His hair was a greasy mess already, his clothes stained with sweat and vomit and all kinds of other fluids that he much rather now know the origins of. The way he carried himself spoke of the pain he was going through not only from the detox but the injuries he had received last night from that random stranger that had taken advantage of him. His skin looked like wax and the beads of sweat that lingered on his brow made it seem like he was running a fever. He was, as Luther quickly assessed putting a hand on Klaus’ forehead. »You need a doctor.« 

»Yeah … Nice thought there - No health insurance, though.« 

Luther bit his tongue. All this time, he had not thought about it. He had been living at home, like Klaus, all his needs had been taken care of. Sure, Klaus would have had the same luxury with Grace around to take care of him but out here … Out here they were on their own. No roof over their heads, no insurance, no food, no endless amounts of money to fall back on. Crap.

»You need rest, though.«

»No rest for the wicked, brother dear. Let's just keep going. I can rest when we made it to our dear sister. I will sit in her jacuzzi with a glass of champagne and a face mask and chocolate-covered strawberries. That’s how I will get back on my feet, Sugar.« 

He couldn't help but roll his eyes with a soft chuckle. »Okay.« He finally agreed. »But we’ll need a means of transportation. We could rent a car, I guess. And we’ll need supplies.« 

»Now we’re speaking the same language.« 

Going shopping with Klaus wasn’t exactly easy. He was not like a needy toddler screaming for candy, of course (although Luther imagined that this could be arranged) but he was still a hand full. In Klaus’ defense, though, his brother seemed much too weak and sick to be much of a nuisance right now. More annoying were the people staring at them. Well, Klaus looked like he had the plague so he couldn't blame the people that they were coming across but still … it was annoying. 

Luther wasn’t used to that kind of negative attention while Klaus didn't even seem to notice. Maybe it was that what was driving him up the wall. Not the stares and the whispering behind their back but that Klaus seemed so unfazed by it. He was used to it. He shouldn't be used to it. He was a Hargreeves, after all. He was one of five heirs of a famous billionaire. He might not have been born with a silver spoon in his mouth but Reginald had pretty quickly shoved one in there. He had grown up with wealth and security and without the worries, normal people had to face every day. He had grown up privileged and with an education most people could only dream about. He had decided to throw it all away and now people looked at him like the dirt under their shoes was worth more than Klaus Hargreeves.

They gathered what they needed as quickly as they possibly could, just a bunch of foods and drinks for the road, Gatorade, and medicine for Klaus. At least that was the plan. However, if there was one thing that was certain when it came to dealing with Klaus Hargreeves, it was that nothing could ever be predicted and nothing ever went according to plan. 

Luther was already as the cash register paying as he heard the commotion from further back in the store. 

»Hey!« A voice called out sharply followed by the sound of glass breaking and all kinds of things crashing to the ground. He could _feel_ his brother taking off running more than he could see it. Quickly, Luther pushed his money across the counter, grabbed his plastic bag and followed his brother and the security guard outside.

It was a miracle that Klaus was even able to run like this in his current condition - or run at all. Luther barely caught his brother dart into a narrow alleyway to the right as the security guard followed him hot on his tail. There was no way that Klaus was going to escape the man. Just as Luther reached the mouth of the alley, he already heard his brother shout and yell at the top of his lungs, spitting and hissing like a cat. His brother had run straight into a dead end as the alley was interrupted by a chain-link fence halfway down. The security guard had his brother pressed into the ground face down, sitting on Klaus’ back with the items that his brother had stolen littered all around him. Klaus kept tossing and bucking against the man but was unable to get him off - of course. 

»Get off of me!« Klaus shrieked at the top of his lungs although his breathing was labored and thin. »Fucking Asshole! You are hurting me!« 

Under different circumstances, Luther wouldn't be bothered by that scene in front of him. Klaus had stolen from the supermarket and he got what he deserved as anyone should get the right punishment for their crimes. However, seeing his little brother on the ground like this, helplessly but relentlessly fighting against the much stronger man while knowing how badly injured Klaus was beneath his clothes, filled Luther with righteous anger. 

He almost dropped his plastic bag as he quickly hurried into the alley just as Klaus let out a pained whine. Luther was at their side in a matter of mere seconds before he pulled the man back by the collar of his shirt and thus off of Klaus. The punch that followed came swiftly and knocked the security guard right out. Sometimes he forgot how strong he was compared to normal people and under different circumstances, he would have checked him for more serious injuries but right now he just didn't care.

»Klaus, fuck!« He called out as he crouched down to help his brother. Klaus’ first instinct was to lash out at him but Luther quickly took a hold of his wrists to keep him from doing so. »Hey, it's me! It's just me! Everything is fine! What did you do that for?« 

»I was hungry!« 

»Stop bullshitting me, Klaus! I bought us food, come on now! Stop this shit, okay? We’re in this together!« 

»It's not that easy!«

»Yes, it is!« Luther growled. »So what the fuck did you even take?« He finally had a chance to take in the few items scattered over the ground. There was a broken bottle of vodka amongst a few chocolate bars and cookies. The disappointment weighed heavily on Luther’s shoulders. »Klaus…«

»Yes, yes, _Klaus_!« Number Four growled as he sat up. In his confusion, he managed to cut his hand on one of the glass shards of the broken bottle on the ground and yelled out in frustration and pain. »The fucking family disappointment! Always the disappointment!«

»I just wanna know why.« Luther sighed. »We agreed that you would get clean - that included alcohol.« 

»I know, I just-« 

»We should get going now … before he wakes up.« He grunted and got off the ground. He wouldn't have this discussion right now in this alley with the very real possibility of the police finding them here. He had never needed to think that he needed to avoid the police. »And we need to patch you up.« 

He couldn't help but feel guilty for knocking the security guard out cold as he helped his brother to his feet, gathered what was left of Klaus shopping trip in his own plastic bag and took his arm to guide him out of the alley and back into the street. Together the Hargreeves brothers hurried away from the store as quickly as Klaus’ injuries and his general bad condition would allow it. 

He seemed wobblier on his feet with each step and Luther could only imagine that the attack of the security guard had made his injuries worse. He had seen Klaus’ torso up close and personal, after all. It had been mottled in black and blue bruises at the motel.

»Where are we going?« Klaus muttered as he tried to hurry along with Luther but his breathing was already ragged and quick as he was unable to keep in step with his much taller, much faster brother. He slowed down only marginally as he realized how hard a time Klaus had. 

»I’m gonna get us a rental car now.«

»Yay, road trip.«

»Before we hit the road, we are going to patch you up, though. There will be a first aid kit in the car so we should have everything we need for your wounds - as long as you could refrain from acquiring even more wounds until we reach L.A., okay?«

»Hey, it's not like I’m going out of my way to get beat up, okay?«

»No? Because it does look like it.«

»Careful, Luther. It almost looks like you would care. You should see a doctor about that.«

»I _do_ care, Asshole.« And yet, Klaus still seemed unable to see it, even after Luther left everything behind just for his brother. He had lost everything for his junkie brother but said brother was blind to it. Maybe he couldn't really fault him for it either. Maybe this reaction of Klaus was natural after years and years of being left out, of being ignored by his siblings, of being shown that he was useless.

When they reached the nearest car rental, he took Klaus inside with him simply because he couldn't trust him to stay outside alone. If he would, there was no telling if his brother wouldn't run off instead. A small bell chimed over the door when they walked into the car rental and the lady behind the counter looked up at them bored. At first, he had been afraid that she wouldn't give them a car when she would see Klaus but it became pretty clear that _Susan_ couldn't care less. Only ten minutes after first entering the car rental, they walked back out with the keys to a white 2006 Hyundai.

»Fancy.« Klaus muttered as they found the right car in the parking lot. It was a slow day and not many people were around. Susan most certainly wouldn't care that Luther was about to make use of the first aid kit in the car already.

»Yeah, shut up.« Luther sighed and unlocked the car, going straight for the trunk and opened it. »Sit down.« He gestured to the trunk and Klaus sat down on the edge with a sigh. His first aid training was a little while ago but he could clean up Klaus’ hand at the very least. 

»It's really not that big of a deal.«

»Yeah, it is if this wound gets infected. You know, now the vodka would have come in handy but we will have to make do with water.« Luther said as he sat down next to Klaus and ignored the way the car dipped under his weight. Instead, he grabbed the first aid kit and pulled one of the water bottles out of his plastic bag. Klaus allowed him without a fuss to take his injured hand and pour water on it. Klaus, who used to be so loud and expressive over little things to get attention. Klaus who would make certain that the whole entire world would know about the nasty cough he had. Klaus, who didn't say anything when he got seriously injured, or beaten, or even raped out there in the streets.

His little brother was a walking, talking contradiction. A big, cosmic joke.

He tried to be as gentle as his unnatural strength would allow him to be as he cleaned out the wound carefully. »You are in luck that it's not any deeper or we would have needed to stitch it and your tattoo would have been ruined.« Luther sighed as he took a closer look at the wound, making sure that all the dirt was washed out of it before he unpacked one of the pre-packaged gauze rolls from the first aid kit and began securely wrapping it around Klaus’ thin hand. »That’ll do for now. Any other wounds I should see?«

»No.« Klaus sighed and sounded awfully timid. It was weird, this whole situation. Taking care of Klaus had always been Diego’s job. 

He had been the officially appointed Klaus-handler, as Allison had joked once or twice. No matter what it was, no matter what bitch-fit Klaus had thrown, they had sent Diego in to handle him and Number Two had made sure that Klaus would comply with anything. He had never managed to grasp just how his brother had done it but he had seen the bond that Two and Four had always shared, a deep understanding that no one else could ever hope to come close to in regards to Klaus. Right now, everything would be so much easier, if Diego would be here to help.

»Okay.« He nodded and patted his shoulder awkwardly. »Get in then, we have a long way ahead of us.« 

He couldn't quite discern the look in Klaus’ eyes as he nodded and raised to his feet. He seemed bone-tired and exhausted but there was something else too, something underneath all of that, underneath all his usual bravado, and the makeup. The real Klaus, perhaps. The thing that none of them had seen for at least ten years at this point. The thing Klaus was so adamant to hide from his siblings and the rest of the world. 

Klaus got into the car on the passenger’s side and Luther quickly grabbed the plastic bag again, closed the trunk and walked around to get in behind the wheel. »As soon as you are better« He announced as he buckled himself in and started the car. »And as soon as we are settled in L.A., I’ll teach you how to drive.«

»What?«

»I think it's about time, huh? I can't drive you everywhere when we have a life in Cally. And there won’t be a Diego Hargreeves Taxi Service either.«

»I can walk just fine. I am a good walker.« 

»You are an idiot, that's what you are.« Luther chuckled fondly and finally backed out of the parking lot of the rental car service to hit the road.

**-End of Chapter 2-**


	3. Chapter 3

The car ride was much quieter than he would have anticipated which was largely to the fact that Klaus had fallen asleep an hour into the drive. His fever was nowhere near going down as Luther realized as he put his hand on Klaus’ forehead while his little brother was out of commission and couldn't comment on it. They had left the city that they had been stranded in behind them half an hour after they had left the car rental and hit the highway. He felt already a little tired after the exhausting last forty-eight hours that he had had. Ever since his father had given him the order to throw Klaus out of the house, he hadn't really slept all that much, always on edge due to Klaus’ presence in his proximity. 

At the motel, he hadn't really trusted his brother not to run off to get high if he would fall asleep and not be able to watch him. And at the bus … Well, their bus ride had been over after only three hours so there had been nothing more than a brief little nap. Maybe this was the wrong way to go about all of this. He recognized that forgoing sleep because he couldn't trust his brother not to abandon him and relapse, was the wrong way forward and would always lead to chaos and anger and heartache. Klaus needed to be _willing_ to get clean. The desire to be sober had to come from within Klaus himself and Luther couldn't force it upon him to feel that way. He knew that.

Hell, ever since he had first realized how bad Klaus’ drug habit had become, he had taken so many books about drugs and drug rehabilitation from the public library that the friendly librarian had started to assume that Luther was the one with the problem. He had read all the pamphlets that he had found in Diego’s room after he had moved out to become a cop. He knew that rehabilitation couldn't be _forced_ and that it needed to click inside Klaus’ head for it to work but … If Klaus would bail on him now after he had left everything behind that he knew and loved … He wasn't able to predict how he would deal with that. 

They might not have been very close in the past, but Klaus was still his brother and Luther loved him dearly. The thought of one day being called to the morgue to identify his little brother’s corpse after some overdose had proven fatal or after someone had stabbed him or beaten him to death was something that he couldn't bear. That knowledge had truly time to sink in after he had seen his brother’s body at the motel, after he had had time to think about it what Klaus was doing to himself out there and how real the possibility was that someone might throw him in a ditch like a piece of trash.

Maybe that was the worst part about it now. Knowing that the people Klaus would meet with saw his little brother as nothing but trash, something they could use and abuse and then throw away. Maybe it was this thought process that made Diego snap, in the end, that made Diego run away from Klaus because he couldn't deal with the agony that those kinds of thoughts brought. Now that he knew, all kinds of horror scenarios were at the forefront of his mind. 

Until that night, he had only assumed that Klaus would be out there somewhere, partying and having fun, dancing through the nights, maybe having the occasional hook-up and getting high as a kite. He wasn't naive about the dangers of the night or the seedy underbelly of the party scene but he had never quite registered that his brother could be in danger from something else but the drugs he would put into his body willingly. How stupid of him. How ignorant of him. He should’ve protected him, should’ve cared more. 

That was why he turned his back to his father now. Because finally, Luther had managed to grasp the fact that _Reginald_ didn't care. Reginald didn't care for either one of them. Reginald didn't care what happened to them. He wouldn't care whether it would be Klaus or Luther or Diego or one of their sisters lying on the cold metal table of a morgue. Maybe the next mission he would have sent Luther on would have been his last. Since he was alone now, the missions had gotten harder and harder and more and more dangerous even for him. He was not invincible, not immortal and his father either forgot that he was a mortal human being or he simply didn't care. He hadn't cared either when Luther had carried Ben home that day.

At the thought, he clenched his fingers harder around the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. 

He had carried Ben home back then. His little brother. Ben had always been the best of them. But Klaus had always been the kindest and most understanding of them and he didn't want to be the one who would carry Klaus back home. 

Suddenly, Klaus stirred next to him on the passenger's seat. His green eyes flew open at once and Klaus barely had time to brush his left hand against Luther’s arm before Luther could pull over and stop the car. Klaus didn't need to say anything - not that he could - for Luther to understand what was wrong. The moment the car screeched to a halt, Klaus had unbuckled his seatbelt, opened his door and scrambled outside. He watched how his brother helplessly fell to his knees and started puking his guts out right where he knelt on the ground. 

Luther couldn't help but pity his brother as he got out of the car as well and grabbed the already opened water bottle from before when he cleaned Klaus’ injury. He walked around the car a bit slower to give Klaus ample time to empty his stomach onto the pavement. When he reached Klaus, he had to swallow down his disgust as nausea hit him square in the stomach. He had never been particularly good with these kinds of things. That was more Diego’s forte - as seemed everything that pertained to actual physical care. Looking back on it, there seemed to be nothing that could disgust Diego. 

Right now, he wished he had his brother’s stomach as he crouched down next to Klaus and gently rubbed his back in soothing circles, deciding that he needed to pull through his own urge to vomit at the sight and the smell. He could only assume that this would happen a few more times from now on and he needed to be there for his little brother.

When it finally appeared as if there was nothing left Klaus could possibly puke out - not that there would have been anything inside that stomach, to begin with - Luther sat down on the asphalt and carefully pulled Klaus against him before holding the now uncapped water bottle to Klaus’ dry lips. »Here, drink this. Drink up, okay? You need to stay hydrated.« 

Klaus didn't need to be told twice as he gulped down on the water so quickly that he almost choked on it a few times. The bottle was empty in no time and Luther was left dragging his fingers through sweat-soaked curls for a little while until Klaus calmed down again. 

»Fuck this…« Klaus muttered quietly. His voice sounded hoarse and dry and scratchy. Sure, he had put this all upon himself but still, Luther pitied him greatly. He was in pain and he could feel the heat radiating from him as Klaus leaned against him.

»You’ll get through it.« Luther promised. »The worst is already behind you.«

»It's just … the car ride and … withdrawal … does not mix that well, you know?«

»You also have a fever and you are injured.« Luther added to show that he understood, to show that he didn't judge or blame him. Blaming Klaus came naturally to Luther but right now it would be the wrong move and he knew that. He had failed to be a big brother for years now and he was adamant to make it better. »Maybe you should lie down in the backseat? I saw that we had two blankets in the trunk. You need more sleep.«

»No … no … I’d rather stay in the front with you.«

»Okay.« Luther murmured. »But I’ll give you a blanket regardless. I think we should pull over soon anyway. I am bone-tired. Maybe I can go for two more hours but then the next motel at the side of the road is ours.«

»Yeah … sounds good. Do you have enough money, though?«

»If we manage to cut down on expenses for food and water, we should manage to reach L.A. without problem with the money I have left.«

»I don't need a motel room, you know? I can sleep anywhere.« 

»I know, but that doesn't mean you should.« Luther sighed. »We can make it to L.A. by tomorrow night if things work out.« 

»Okay.« He could tell that Klaus wanted to argue with him, that he didn't want to be a burden to his brother in that tense situation they were in but, thankfully, he kept his mouth shut because Luther had no energy left to argue.

※※※※※※※

Thank God, the motel had a working shower. Luther was absolutely exhausted when they reached their motel room and even though he would be willing to sell his own grandmother - if he had one - to take a shower right now and then curl up in the only bed in the room, he had let Klaus go first. It was a bit self-serving too, after all, he had been the person cooped up with Klaus for three hours in that tiny car. His brother was going through Hell and back right now and it showed. So, Luther Hargreeves found himself sitting on the closed lid of the toilet inside the bathroom while his brother was taking a shower right next to him behind that moldy plastic curtain.

»You don't need to watch over me, you know that, right? Or are you gonna watch when I’m taking a piss too? Are you gonna hold my dick for me?« Klaus’ voice suddenly came from beyond the curtain. »I mean, don't get me wrong, Brother, I like having an audience and this brotherly bonding time is wonderful but you could’ve just told me that you swing that way and we could’ve figured something out, baby.«

»Stop talking bullshit.« Luther groaned. He was really starting to develop a whole new level of respect and appreciation for Diego for putting up with that mouth for such a long time. He knew that Klaus was only trying to get him a bit riled up, to get under his skin and annoy and tease him, but it was still grinding his gears regardless. »I’m just here in case you fall on your ass - again.«

Klaus gave a little, undignified snort at that. It was true, though. On their way from the car to the motel room, Klaus had fallen twice because his legs hadn't been able to support him. He sat here inside the bathroom only because he didn't want to find Klaus with his head bashed in.

»Don't use up all the hot water!«

»Oops.« Klaus chuckled. »Well, you can just join me in here. Not like you have anything I wouldn't have seen before. We have bathed together as kids, after all, and as far as I recall, you have the same parts as me downstairs.«

»You only bathed with Diego.« Luther huffed with a fond roll of his eyes.

»Oh, right … Well, still.«

»I’m not coming in.«

»If I were Allison you would already be naked and ready to go.«

»Klaus!«

»Okay, okay, sorry! Sore topic, I know, I know!« Klaus sighed from beneath the curtain but he was finally switching off the water even though Luther didn't have any hope that there would be a single drop of hot water left for him. 

Well, he was used to taking cold showers at the mansion. Dad said that cold showers made a man tougher. If it was true, it was no wonder that Klaus was such a softie. As Klaus’ hand extended from beyond the curtain and made a grabby motion, Luther got up with a sigh, took the towel from its hook and handed it to Klaus. Two seconds later, his brother brushed the curtain back with a flourish that someone who kept falling on his scrawny little junkie ass should by no means possess, and got out of the tub with the towel tightly wrapped around him. 

»All yours now.« Klaus grinned.

»Awesome. I’ll be over in five, okay? Get ready for bed and lay down. You need rest, your fever hasn't gone down yet. Are you hungry?«

»No, Mom.« Klaus rolled his eyes and waddled out of the bathroom but left the door open and Luther didn't care. In fact, he liked it better this way so that he would hear if Klaus needed help or wanted to sneak out even. He got undressed quickly and jumped into the shower. He was surprised, however when he heard Klaus’ voice chime up again - quite near too. If he wouldn't know any better, he would say Klaus was sitting on the lid of the toilet like he had before.

»Hey … Have I ever told you why Diego and I bathed together as kids?«

»Mom said it was easier to handle you guys as a package.« Luther huffed. »You were attached at the hips at that time and one of you would always make some sort of fuss or trouble when separated. Especially during bath time. I remember that this was her tactic to make you eat your vegetables too. She just had to sit Diego next to you who ate anything Mom made anyway and you would follow his example. You were like a little duckling.«

»Yeah…« Klaus sighed softly. He imagined him to smile at the memory - one of the more pleasant ones he got for certain. »But the real reason was that Diego was deathly afraid of water. Like … it was just as bad as needles, only that he wouldn't pass out but start fighting and throwing shit. So we were put in the tub together. It made him feel safer when I was there too.«

»I didn't know that.«

»Of course, not.« His words stung a little more than they had any right to. »I mean Diego was always way too macho to say something, right? But Reggie … Well, he put him into a water tank regularly, to train his abilities.«

»A water tank?«

»Yes. Like the one on the roof, remember? He put him in there and locked the lid so he couldn't get out to test out how long he could hold his breath. No wonder he’s fucked up about water, right?« 

He wanted to say that Klaus was lying, that he was only making shit up not to make Luther feel bad for not noticing. However, what reason had Klaus to do that? He had never been malicious in any way. That was just not who Klaus Hargreeves was.

»But swimming lessons were never a problem.« He muttered.

»No … At that point, he was adamant to pretend that everything was fine. That's just how you boys tick, I suppose. Always in need to appear strong.«

»Not you.«

»Ouch.«

»No, I mean … you never bothered to try playing along and pretend like you were some macho guy like us.«

»Well, it was obvious from the start that I wasn’t, right?«

»Maybe. But you were the fastest of us for a while.«

»That I was.« Klaus chuckled. »And then I experienced the wonders of weed for the first time. Ah … Good times.« 

»Was that before or after you broke your jaw?«

»Why is everyone always harping on me breaking my jaw? Quite frankly, it's rude. I’m not harping on how you broke your leg once either, right? Or how you broke Diego’s wrist in a fight once! Or how-«

»Okay, okay, I got it!« Luther groaned as he was lathering his exhausted body in soap as quickly as he could. Klaus had left just enough warm water for him to at least enjoy half a warm shower. It was already starting to run cold now. 

»It was after, though.« Klaus sighed. »When I broke my jaw, Mom gave me morphine and … what can I tell you, Lu? I was hooked.«

»You serious? I mean, yes morphine can be addictive but-«

»Ah, you don't get it.« Klaus murmured and he could almost hear the wistful smile on his face as he said that. 

»Explain it, then. I’d like to understand.«

»Really?«

»Yes, really.«

»Well … It was just … suddenly everything was silent, you know? I don't know how else to describe it. For the first time since I turned four, I could actually sleep without nightmares or without spookies screaming in my ears. I couldn't see them, I couldn't hear them and they didn't keep me up at night anymore. It was … bliss.« He paused for a moment as he recanted this story and Luther found himself pausing too, trying to imagine what it had been like for Klaus. 

»And then when Mom stopped giving me morphine for the pain, everything came back tenfold. So, as soon as I could use my mouth again, I tried other things. Booze, at first. I started raiding Dad’s liquor cabinet before we turned twelve and at thirteen, I was rolling blunts under the dining table. Nothing worked out for too long, though. Not with my powers growing and growing. Soon the weed couldn't cut it anymore. It was merely a bit of a reprieve here and there, making me _care_ less while the booze made me _feel_ less. The stronger my powers got, the harder the drugs became that I would start taking and now we’re here.«

As he switched off the shower, he could Klaus hear rustle with something only for a hand to poke in at the side of the tub through the curtain with a towel. Luther couldn't help but smile a little as he wrapped the towel around himself and got out of the tub. Surprisingly, he found Klaus dressed in the old shirt of his that Luther had worn under his sweatshirt and his boxer shorts already. He looked smaller in Luther’s shirt, younger without the smudged make-up on his face and his curls hanging messily into his forehead. 

»Thank you.« He murmured and just stood there for a second or two before he cleared his throat awkwardly. »Hey, how about you lay down now. Let me take care of your clothes. They need a wash and I found travel-sized detergent earlier. Someone must’ve forgotten it here. We can hang them over the heater and they will be as good as new tomorrow.«

Klaus opened his mouth to say something before his eyes quickly darted to a corner at the side and then he nodded without a word. He watched how his brother slowly picked himself up from the toilet and staggered back into the main room, leaving Luther alone with his thoughts. While he was washing Klaus’ dirty clothes, he couldn't help but think about what his brother had just told him. He had never questioned Klaus’ behavior, never wondered why he was acting the way he did or what made him take drugs, in the first place. He had never stopped to consider the reasons, never deemed it important enough to imagine how his powers might work and how exhausting it must be to have a power you can’t shut off. He felt bad, as he wrung out Klaus leather pants and his flimsy shirt and hung both over the heater in the bathroom. He felt bad, as he walked into the main room and got dressed before slumping down in the chair to sleep.

»What are you doing?« Klaus murmured into the pillow. »The bed’s big enough for both of us. Come cuddle with me.«

»Not when you say it like that.« Luther sighed but got up anyway. Klaus was right. The bed was big enough and they were brothers. There was nothing wrong with sharing a bed. He did regret climbing into bed with Klaus, however, the moment he felt Klaus’ cold feet attack his own and had Klaus snuggle up to him mercilessly. He felt how his brother was pretty much pressing his nose into his shoulder, his wet curls soaking Luther’s shirt within seconds, startling an annoyed groan out of Number One. »What are you doing?« 

»There’s a man hanging from the ceiling.« Klaus muttered quietly into the darkness as a way of explanation and Luther pulled him a little closer against his chest.

**-End of Chapter 3-**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I hope you guys like the update. I try to update as quickly as possible. So far I have finished 5 chapters with chapter 6 being a work in progress right now. In these trying times, I want to at least try to give you guys something to look forward to, to keep your mind off of the shit-show that's going on right now


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With a guest-star appearance by Diego whoop whoop

He was shaken awake almost violently that night - even though it took Luther a moment to realize that it was indeed still nighttime thanks to the motel’s neon sign right outside their window that cast their room into a green glow at all hours of the day. At first, he didn't know where he was, then he didn't know what was going on around him. A sharp kick to his shin reminded him that he wasn’t actually alone in the bed and made him remember Klaus and the horrible condition his brother was in. Immediately he jolted upright in bed and switched on the lamp on the nightstand - thankful that it was working at the very least. 

»Klaus, hey…« He muttered even though his voice was hoarse from sleep and his mind still groggy. Due to his strict training routine, he was used to not sleeping much but even he had his limits and his body desired sleep more than anything right now. Carefully, he placed a hand on Klaus’ left shoulder to turn him onto his back. His eyes were still closed, so he could only assume that Klaus was suffering from a nightmare but his curls were glued to his forehead with sweat, his cheeks were red and his skin looked like wax. »Fuck! Klaus! Hey, Klaus, wake up!« 

He was burning up as Luther put a hand on his forehead. Of course, he didn't have a thermometer with him but he had seen one in one of the vending machines in the hallway when they arrived. Without wasting another thought, Luther jumped out of bed, grabbed his wallet and the room key and hurried outside. Even without a thermometer, he could tell that Klaus’ fever was bad and that he needed something more accurate than his own hand to determine how bad it truly was. 

He made haste to reach the vending machine that sold all the essentials, like toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, and thermometers. He quickly punched in the number he needed and fed the thing his money. If they would continue spending money like this they would really struggle to get to L.A. Surely, Dad had blocked his cards by now - and even if he hadn't, Luther didn't want to risk that Reginald would know where they were in case the billionaire wanted to come after them for some reason.

The thermometer was released from its place in the vending machine, slithered slowly into the slot and got stuck only for Luther to slam the side of the machine so hard that not only the thermometer but four toothbrushes and three razors spilled out. He grabbed all the items without even thinking about it and rushed back to Klaus. He could give the other things back later and if he would let them lie there, someone would certainly steal them. Not that it was important right now. 

When he hurried back into the room, he found Klaus’ eyes open but he noticed quickly that his brother was completely out of it regardless. His eyes were glazed over with fever and he doubted that Klaus could tell what was going on around him. He seemed afraid, though - panicked even, when Luther hurried towards him and sat down next to him on the bed. He made quick work of the plastic packaging around the thermometer, dumping the other items on the ground with no care in the world. Klaus struggled, however, when Luther tried to take a hold of his head. Weak hands tried to push him off with as much strength as a baby kitten would have. He wondered if Klaus thought that he was having a bad trip. Was he recognizing the room he was in as a motel room? Did he think Luther was one of those assholes he would usually end up with in such a scenario? 

»No…« Klaus moaned quietly into the room. »No, no, no … please.«

It was heartbreaking for Luther and he would rather leave Klaus alone and not make him even more afraid than he already was right now but his brother needed help and once again he wished that Diego would be here. Diego would know how to get through to him. But he was alone. And he was only Luther - Klaus’ least favorite brother.

»Shhh« He tried helplessly. »Hey, Klaus, it's me … everything’s okay. You have a fever.« 

He tried coaxing him into giving up his fight regardless of the fact that he could just force the thermometer under his tongue easily. He didn't want to administer force, though. As Klaus still didn't seem to recognize him, he gently brushed his fingers through his curls in the same way he had Diego sometimes seen doing when Klaus had been sick or needed to be calmed down before Reginald would hear him cry from a nightmare. It seemed to take hours until Klaus started calming down a little. 

»See?« He whispered. »Everything is okay. You are safe here, okay? I’m not doing anything to you, I just need to see how high your fever got, okay?« 

_Okay, okay, okay, okay_ \- He tended to say ‘okay’ a lot when he was nervous or agitated. He had never quite noticed that until now. He remembered vaguely saying ‘okay’ a lot too when Ben died. Klaus gave a weak little nod but Luther doubted that he had any inkling of understanding of the current situation. Still, Klaus stopped fighting and he even opened his mouth so that Luther could carefully push the thermometer under his tongue. After two seconds it gave a little beep and he quickly pulled it out again only to curse. 

»106°F? Shit! Shit, Klaus … Shit that’s bad!« He wished Grace would be here right now. She would know what to do but Luther had no fucking idea! He knew basic first aid, yes, but this? Why should he know how to deal with something like this? He looked around in panic as Klaus was writhing in pain on the bed but, of course, there was no magic Grace-apparition that would tell him what to do. He had no idea what to do! A hospital?

Diego.

He grabbed the phone from the nightstand without thinking twice about it and punched in the only number that he had from his brother. Number Two had told him about the cell-phone he had bought right after he had fled the academy and up until now he hadn't had a clue why. Diego and he clearly hadn't had the kind of relationship where Diego would want Luther to be able to reach out and stay in contact, right? But now it started to dawn on him that this had been about Klaus. Diego had wanted Luther to know how to reach him in case of an emergency with Klaus. Despite running from their little brother, Diego had kept an ear out regardless.

He listened to the ringing, praying to God - or whoever was watching over their sorry asses - that Diego would pick up and not ignore the call from an unknown number out of town. And yet, just as he was about to give up, there was a small click on the other side as the call was accepted. »What?« Diego’s sleepy voice came through the phone and Luther had never been more thankful in his life to hear Number Two talking.

»Diego! Shit! Thank God, you picked up!«

»What- Luther? That you?« He still sounded sleepy and confused with just the tiniest hint of anger seeping through now. He could hear the rustling of what sounded like a blanket on the other side. »What happened? Has the academy burned to the ground finally? Dad still alive and kicking?«

»Diego, listen, I need your help!« He shot the other man down impatiently. »I am … It's a long story, okay? I’m not at the academy right now.«

»What? Where are you?«

»I am … on my way to L.A.- Listen! It's not important. All you need to know is that I am in some random motel with Klaus right now and he’s burning up.«

»You are in a motel with Klaus? What the hell is going on there, Luther?«

»Diego, focus! Klaus runs a fever of 106°F and I have no idea what to do, okay? Should I bring him to a hospital? I have no idea where the nearest hospital is and I don't have any money for a fucking doctor! So I need you to focus and help me!« There was silence for a moment on the other side. »Diego!« 

»Tell me where you guys are and I’m coming.«

»No! Just tell me what to do!«

»Okay« He groaned and then with a sigh he added: »Do you have a bathtub?«

»Yes.«

»Good. Get as much ice as you can from the vending machine and fill the tub with water and ice and put him in.«

»What?«

»It's the quickest way to cool him down!« 

»Okay I-«

»Stay on the line, okay? Just, don’t hang up in case you need me.«

»Do you wanna talk to Klaus? I mean … I think he’s pretty out of it right now, but he’s awake so…«

»Yeah, hand me over.« There was an undeniable softness to Diego’s voice at the words that gave pause to Luther’s actions for a moment before he gently nudged Klaus to get his attention.

»Hey … Klaus« He muttered quietly and found his brother blinking sleepily at him. He looked like a child the way he reacted to him and followed him with his big doe eyes. »Hey … you wanna talk to Diego?«

»Diego?« Klaus muttered and as he tried to look around, Luther placed a comforting hand on his cheek. 

»He’s on the phone … Here … Can you hold it? Wait, no … I lay it down, okay?« It really was like handling a child right now as he laid down the receiver next to Klaus’ ear on the mattress. He could hear Diego’s voice coming through but didn't pay any attention as he quickly got back to his feet. He rushed outside with the ice bucket that was next to the door on a small table and hurried back down the hallway to the set of vending machines from before. In a weird way, it was a comforting thought that Diego was with Klaus right now, even if Diego wasn’t physically present to help their brother. His voice could keep Klaus calm and comforted. That was enough. 

When he returned with the bucket full of ice he could hear Klaus actually talking even though he was slurring his words and didn't make much sense. He had no time to actually listen to what he was saying as he rushed into the bathroom, turned on the cold water and started dumping ice into the tub. It took him about ten minutes to get the ice bath ready until he walked back to the bed and Klaus.

»Hey, Klaus, ready for a bath?« Again his brother looked at him out of those big eyes but with a nod. »Good, okay put your arm around my shoulders, I’m gonna carry you.« 

Not five minutes later, he had deposited Klaus in the tub and after his initial struggle because of the cold water, he was lying still in the tub with chattering teeth and trembling limbs. The chord of the phone of the room barely reached the bathroom but with the chord from the receiver pulled all the way, Luther could sit next to the tub and still have Diego there with them. Klaus was still dressed in his boxer shorts and the shirt he had worn to bed. He needed to find something else his brother could wear to sleep in as soon as he would take him out of the tub.

»How’s he doing?« Diego’s voice came over the phone quietly. 

»Freezing his ass off.« Luther grunted but brushed a hand over Klaus’ head. »But I think it helps.«

»Okay, leave him in there for ten more minutes and then back to bed. You need to check his temperature at least once an hour.«

»I can do that.« Luther yawned. »Do you think we will be able to hit the road soon again? I’d rather not stay another night in this craphole.«

»If his temperature stays stable for at least two hours, I think it’s safe enough to travel. Do you have any idea why he got a fever in the first place? Was he sick or something?«

»Not sick … though … Well, I mean, when we started this adventure he had previously spent a few hours outside. He … He went out like he always did and…« He trailed off, not wanting to make Diego panic or feel compelled to jump in his car and follow them to L.A. out of worry. He didn't need to know the details. It couldn't be helped now anymore anyway. Diego would just beat himself up like he was so prone to doing anyway. »Well, he had a rough night, slept outside probably. It could be possible that he’s caught a cold but he didn't show any signs of it. I think it's the withdrawal.«

»Withdrawal?«

»I … It's a long story.« He sighed again. »I’m telling you when we arrive in L.A. and met with Allison, okay? But yeah, he’s going cold turkey right now.«

»And you took him on a cross country road trip while he’s doing that?« Diego gave a sharp whistle. »Yeah, no wonder he’s running a fever. Jeez, Luther! Going cold turkey is not a thing to mess around with! It's dangerous if you don't have someone with you who knows what to do in case of an emergency!«

»I know!« He growled and startled Klaus so he immediately lowered his voice again. »I know … I read the pamphlets too, you know? Do you really think I didn't care about his drug problem? I _know_ , Diego. But I couldn't allow him to continue like before while I was going across the country with him. I mean what did you expect me to do? Have him smoke weed while I was driving? Allowing him to stick a needle up his arm? It was a now or never situation and I think he’s past the worst now.«

»No, brother, I think he’s in the thick of it now. How long is this been going on now?«

»We left the house … Shit, I don't know. Maybe sixty hours ago or so. We went on a bus first but they kicked us out after three hours, then we started driving for a few hours. I wanted to make it to Allison until tomorrow night.«

»Yeah, scratch that.«

»So I’ve realized. Shit … I don't have money for a prolonged road trip.« 

»I can start driving right now and reach you guys in a few hours.«

»No … No, we can manage. But … thank you, Diego. Really, for everything.«

»No problem. If you change your mind, give me a call and I’ll head out, okay?« 

»Yes, deal.« It felt good knowing that he had Diego on his side and ready to help him if he needed it. After an entire lifetime of constant fighting and going at each other’s throats, it was nice to know that he had an ally, that Diego was willing to be there for him. Well, he was doing this for Klaus and Luther would be naive to think anything else but still. He was willing to help and that was a nice change of pace. »Okay, I think I can handle it from here. I call you again if anything changes. You should go back to sleep now. Sorry for waking you up.«

»Nah, Man.« Diego muttered. »Anytime, big guy. Take care.« Diego ended the call and Luther knew that the other man would be too wired to even consider sleeping now. There was nothing he could do about that but at least he could do as Diego told him and take care of their little brother.

**-End of Chapter 4-**


	5. Chapter 5

When the sun rose again the next morning, Klaus was sleeping soundly next to him, his chest rising and falling steadily. Luther was beyond exhausted when he yet again called Diego. This time, his brother took the call much sooner, almost as if he had been waiting for his phone to ring all throughout the night. There was a stabbing sensation of guilt in the pit of his stomach. Surely, Diego had been out of his mind with worry. He would never admit that but Diego was the mother hen of their group of siblings.

»How is he?« Diego mumbled as a way of greeting. No preamble, no ‘hello’, no ‘good morning’, no ‘how are you?’. Diego wasn’t the type for simple small talk to lead into a real conversation. None of them really were the type for that, actually. 

»His fever has gone down and has stayed this way for…« He checked the clock on the wall. »three hours now. I think the worst is behind us. But I guess he won’t wake up before noon.«

»Good.« Diego yawned in response. Now Luther definitely knew that his brother hadn't slept after his first call last night. »Let him sleep then and you should sleep too. If you’re lucky, you could start driving again by noon if he feels up to it, that is.« 

»Let's hope he stays stable.« Luther agreed with a hum. »If not, we’re staying another night.«

»Yes, good. Call me before you start driving again.«

※※※※※※※

At noon, Luther woke up to find Klaus awake and sitting at the small table in the room in some stupid white robe that he had apparently found in the closet and that he would probably insist on taking with him. He looked rough but he was upright, awake and didn't look like he was about to die on the spot or puke himself anytime soon. 

»Good Morning, Sleepyhead.« Klaus muttered in his general direction as he glanced up at the quietly running TV that was mounted on the wall. The weather report was on right now. »It's gonna rain.« He informed Luther and got an acknowledging grunt from him in return.

»How are you feeling?«

»Let's see…« He sighed softly. »So my head hurts and my body feels like it's being pulled apart by four pissed-off chimpanzees but other than that? Pretty good, I would say. Yeah … pretty good. At least I don't feel like puking up my guts anymore so … that's a plus, right?«

With a sigh, Luther slowly rose from the bed and stretched luxuriously. »You scared me good last night.« He confessed to his brother only to have Klaus knit his brows together in confusion before admitting:

»I don't even remember anything.« Klaus chuckled. »What happened?«

»Really? Nothing?«

»Nope!« He made a point of popping the p like they were not talking about how he had Luther scared that he might die of a fever last night. Then again, he had been pretty out of it the entire time. Even while in the bathtub, Klaus had barely been coherent or shown any signs that he would know what was going on around him.

»Your fever spiked and I had to put you in an ice bath.«

»No, I think I would remember that!«

»Apparently, you don't.« As he reached Klaus, his hand immediately found its way to his brother's forehead and he sighed in relief. He felt completely normal. Not the usual Klaus kind of chill that always seemed to cling to his skin but like a normal person. »I even had to call Diego.«

»Diego?« It didn't escape him how the corners of Klaus’ mouth pulled down a little more than they would usually do despite the quiet and hopeful tone of his voice. »Why?«

»Because I was completely out of my depths here. I didn't know what to do and thought that maybe Diego would know. And he did. I mean, he was the one telling me to put you on ice.«

»Yeah that does sound like him … kinky bastard.« He leaned back in his chair and for the first time, Klaus’ eyes found his. It was a testament to how shitty he must still be feeling that there were hardly any stupid comments rolling from his tongue right now. »So, when are we gonna hit the road again, Teddy?«

»Are you feeling up to driving again?«

»Well, I’m not the one who’s gonna drive, right?«

Apparently, it was Klaus’ mission in life to be as annoying as humanly possible. That was, at the very least what Luther started to suspect during their continued road trip. His brother was doing his damndest to rile him up with his constant babbling or his awful singing to the radio. When the second hour of their trip had gone by, it was hard to imagine that Klaus had ever been sick recently, let alone on death’s door just last night. Then again, no matter how sick Klaus had been in the past, he used to bounce back quicker than most other people would. It was just how things seemed supposed to be. He had the worst immune system out of them seven and yet he overcame illnesses much quicker than the rest of them. 

»Can you shut up for a moment?« Luther sighed as the third hour of their drive crawled by. It was December and cold out. The promised rain had yet to come and the days had grown shorter. Soon it would start to get dark again and Luther felt tired and exhausted after the events of the last night. He wouldn't be able to drive into the night but he didn't have enough money for another motel either. 

»You look _grey_.« Klaus helpfully informed him from the sidelines. »Really, dude. You look tired.«

»Surprise, surprise.«

»Hey!« Klaus bit out. »It's not my fault you were up all night, okay, you party animal?«

»Oh, isn't it? I could've sworn that you were the one with the fever and the puking!«

»Okay, okay but who is forcing me to get clean, huh? That’ll be you, Asshole! We wouldn't have all these troubles right now, if you would’ve allowed me to get a hit on the way. Going cold-turkey is bad enough under normal circumstances but during a fucking road trip? Are you kidding me?«

He had Diego’s scolding tone still in his ears and he knew that both of his brothers were right. Of course, taking someone who was going through something like this across the country was a stupid endeavor but what else was he supposed to do? »Would you have stayed in a clinic or a rehab center until you would have detoxed?«

»Of course, not!«

»See? And that's the problem! Klaus, I told you that I was only doing this with you if you would get clean and if this is the only way that you get clean we both have to put up with this shit, okay?« 

»You could've gone without me to L.A.!« Klaus huffed and threw up his hands in exasperation. »I didn't force you to take me along!«

»You are the reason why I left everything behind, Klaus, so don't be an asshole now!«

»Who’s the asshole?«

He opened his mouth to shoot something back but instead, he took three steadying breaths to calm his fluttering nerves and focused back on the road ahead. Klaus was trying to rile him up. He _wanted_ to fight. In a way, Klaus and Diego had much in common but while Klaus sometimes outright came looking for a fight, Diego seemed to just attract those. 

Outside of the cookies and protein bars that they had, he hadn't eaten anything since they had started their journey and it was starting to weigh him down. Klaus knew how to get under his skin, he knew how to push his buttons in a way only a sibling would know and Luther knew that he was doing it on purpose too. He could see how twitchy Klaus was, how he drummed his fingers against his leg, how he gnawed on his lower lip - all that were clear signs of the nervous pent-up energy inside of him that needed to get out of his system some way or another and if he couldn't move, he would let it out in starting a fight. He needed to be careful now. He was treading dangerous grounds.

»We need to figure out where we are gonna sleep tonight. I don't think I can go on for much longer and it's starting to get dark. If we rest somewhere until sunrise, we can make it to L.A. by tomorrow afternoon or something.«

»Oh, just in time for Christmas dinner? Allison will be _thrilled_!«

Christmas. He had forgotten about that. But it was true, tomorrow would be the 24th of December and their sister had no idea that they were headed her way like a dangerous storm. Surely, she had plans for the holiday. Plans that her brothers would crash. If she would be home, that was. What if she was with her new flame Patrick? Unintentionally, he grabbed the steering wheel a little harder than was strictly necessary.

»Focus, Klaus. Do you have any ideas?«

»Since I guess our riches have been thoroughly exhausted by now, I don't think we will have enough money left for another motel room.« Klaus drawled and let his head fall heavily against the window. »So our only option really is to find a parking spot and sleep in the car. Maybe we could find a rest area for truckers or some camping grounds in the woods. Either way, it looks like we have to cuddle up tonight, big boy. Do you wanna be the big spoon or the little spoon? I, for example, prefer to be the little spoon usually, but I could make an exception for you if you’d ask nicely. I give you a good cuddle.«

»We can't stay in the car overnight, Klaus. It's the middle of December and it could be snowing anytime now.«

»So close to California? Are you kidding me? We should probably shed a few layers!«

»You don't even wear any layers!«

»That's not the point.«

»That is exactly the point! We will freeze to death out here if we stay in the car, Klaus.«

»Oh come on, I slept in worse conditions. Have I ever told you about the time when I slept under a bridge?«

»What?«

»Yeah! Last January! During that blizzard!« He sounded almost proud to tell this story. »Dad kicked me out for a few days, told me how much of a fucking disappointment I was, yada-yada. So, none of my friends wanted to take me in. Turns out I have no friends as doing drugs together apparently doesn’t equal some sort of friendship. And apparently there was no bond between me and that one dude after fucking each other's brains out. So, I squatted under a bridge with a few other homeless guys. I think Barry froze to death that week but … Well, here I am, alive and kicking! One night in a car huddled together won’t kill us, big guy!« 

※※※※※※※

He had killed his little brother. He didn't know how it happened or why - just that it did. He had killed his little brother. Klaus was lying on the ground to his feet with vacant eyes and didn't move and he just stood there, trembling like a leave in the wind, unable to grasp the horror of the situation he had maneuvered himself into. 

He had killed his brother.

How it came to a situation in which Luther Hargreeves had killed his brother Klaus in the middle of the woods, one might rightfully ask. An hour after the sun had gone down, Luther had finally pulled off the road and into a dirt road that was leading a few miles into the woods that were lining the highway to both sides neatly. Klaus had pointed out a sign to him that promised of the Riverside Camping Grounds. This time of the year, there really shouldn't be any people out there camping but for them it was ideal. 

After what felt like an eternity of driving through the dark forest, with their car being shaken from one side to the other as the Hyundai was clearly not made for this kind of adventure, they had reached the campsite and found it abandoned. It was nothing more than a big round clearing in the middle of nowhere with the full moon shining right down on them when they slowly got out of the car to stretch their limbs a bit. 

It hadn't taken Klaus long to start a fight with him again. Even now, as he stood there and drove his hands down his face in horror, he couldn't recall anymore what the fucking fight had been about! Klaus had walked around the clearing just to move and get rid of the pent-up energy that seemed stuck in his lithe body. Luther, however, had decided to take care of their sleeping arrangements as he had realized that the backset could be folded back completely, making it almost one line with the trunk. Then, Klaus had made some stupid comment about Allison and Patrick again and from there the argument had escalated as it so easily did with Klaus around. 

And now Klaus was on the ground, dead with blood in his hair, running down the side of his face. He was dead after getting up in Luther’s face. He was dead after Luther had lost control and thrown him across the clearing. He was dead after he had fallen to the ground and split his head open on a rock. He was dead. He was dead. 

He had killed his baby brother and now he didn't know what to do. It was a nightmare, as Luther slowly sank down on the ground beside Klaus. Carefully, he pressed trembling fingers into the crook of his neck to search for his pulse but he didn't find anything. There was nothing. Nothing - and Klaus was dead. He had killed his little brother. He was a killer. 

»Klaus« He whispered regardless of the fact that his brother couldn't hear him. »Klaus, come on, Man, you can't do that to me. Klaus! Wake up!« He pushed at Klaus’ shoulder but all it did was made him roll onto his back and his head loll uselessly to the side. His eyes were open and staring at him in shock. 

A nightmare. It had to be a nightmare! He was still in that fucking motel room with Klaus sleeping by his side! A stupid fight couldn't have taken his brother from him!

Diego would kill him. He would hunt him down to the moon if necessary and he would kill him and Luther … He shouldn't run from this, to begin with. He had done it. He had raised his hand against the weakest member of his family, against the one person in the world who needed him the most right now to help him and he had hurt him. He was no better than Reginald. He was no better than the guy who had beaten Klaus and raped him in some fucking alleyway!

Without thinking about the repercussions, he pulled Klaus’ limp body into his arms, cradled him close to his chest as he burrowed his nose into his curls and let out a shaky sob. His brother was dead. He had failed Ben on that mission and had to carry him back home. He had failed Five as he hadn't kept him from running off that morning never to be seen again. And now he had killed Klaus. They had been seven once and now they were four because of _his_ doing. He pulled Klaus closer to his chest as the tears wouldn't stop flowing and the sobs wouldn't stop wrecking his body and sending tremors through his spine. 

What a leader he was! What a Number One he was! He had lost three of his six siblings! And if he would stay around, he would lose the other three too. _He_ was the poison that was slowly ripping his family apart. _He_ was the cancer that destroyed everything and he had _killed_ his brother with his own hands. 

The same brother who took a shuddering breath in his arms. »Can’t … breathe…« 

**-End of Chapter 5-**


	6. Chapter 6

»Okay, so what did we learn from this experience?« Klaus’ voice sounded as chipper as if he had come back from a sunday afternoon walk in the park. »Apparently, I am immortal.«

»Like a cockroach.«

»Ouch!« They sat together in the back of their car huddled under their blankets while rain was drumming in thick drops down on the roof of the car as if it was normal what just happened - as if his brother had not just died and come back from the dead. As if Luther had not just killed his little brother and got him back by some otherworldly miracle. He had gotten a second chance and this time he wouldn't mess it up. 

»I’m sorry.« He muttered for what felt like the thousands time since all this happened. »I shouldn't have lashed out on you like that … Sometimes I forget my own strength and … I’m sorry, Klaus. I … I don't want to make any excuses … I’m just…«

»It's okay, big guy. Everything’s fine.«

»No!« Luther replied a bit harsher than he meant to, startling his brother in the process and regretting it right away. »No, it's not okay! I _killed_ you, Klaus!«

»Yeah, but I’m alive.« Klaus shrugged. »And I’m sure that there are multiple people in our own family that wanted to kill me at one point or another.« 

»But we didn't _know_ you had this power. _I_ didn't know you had this power! I killed you and if you wouldn’t have had this power … If you wouldn't have come back … I don't know what I would've done.«

»You mean with my body? Burning is always a good option if you want to get rid of evidence.«

»That's not what I meant!« The mischievous spark in Klaus’ green eyes told him, that his brother very well knew this too. He wanted to cheer him up, wanted to make light of the situation, wanted to make Luther, of all people, feel better after killing him. Jesus Christ. As the realization that, even in this situation, his brother just wanted to make it easier for _him_ and was concerned about _Luther_ and not about himself, he put his arm around Klaus’ narrow shoulders and pulled him closer, wrapping his own blanket more securely around the both of them. Through all Klaus’ antics and bravado and his loudness, it was easy to forget or overlook what a caring and kind person he truly was underneath all of this. He had always been like this, Luther had just been too occupied with other things to see it. »I’m the worst big brother in the world.«

»We are literally the exact same age.« Klaus chuckled and nudged his shoulder in the process.

»You are still my little brother.« Luther shrugged. »Diego too. And Five, and Ben, and the girls … you are my little siblings and I did an incredibly bad job at protecting you guys. I was … a bad brother and a worse leader. I mean … I killed you. And because of what? Some stupid fight? If you had stayed dead … I don't think that I could have lived with that. Knowing that I had killed you with my own hands because of literally nothing. After everything we’ve all been through. After Five and Ben … I just … I don't know what I would've done.« 

»Lu…« Klaus voice was quieter and gentler than he had ever heard it as he looked up at him now out of his owlish green eyes. »Lu … what are you saying? You got me worried now.«

»Don't be.« He replied quietly. »I’m just tired.« 

»We should sleep then.«

They made their bed in the back of the car, huddled close together for warmth and comfort. Klaus easily melted into Luther’s side, pliant as always the way he snuggled up close and rested his messy head on Luther’s chest. It was an old habit of Klaus’ that he had almost forgotten about. As a child, Klaus had often snuggled up to his siblings like this, one ear on their chests and only now it really dawned on Luther that he was listening for his heartbeat. Outside in the middle of the woods, surrounded by nothing but trees it was eerie and felt unsafe but somehow this didn't really bother Luther too much right now.

»Love you, Teddy.« Klaus muttered quietly before he allowed his eyes to slip shut.

»Love you too.« Luther all but whispered. He couldn't remember ever telling his brother that he loved him - or any of his siblings for that matter. For the longest time, Luther lay awake and watched in the darkness how Klaus fell asleep. He knew he needed to sleep but the thought scared him. What if he would fall asleep and when he would wake up he would realize that Klaus was still dead out there? What if he would realize that all of this had been a dream? It was this thought that kept him up for hours and hours until his body was exhausted enough to be claimed by complete darkness.

※※※※※※※ 

He woke up without Klaus by his side. He was still in the back of the car lying on his back under two woolen blankets but the space beside him was empty. He shot up at this realization. Klaus was gone. His brother was dead. He had killed his brother. He had killed Klaus last night and everything after that was just a dream, right? His mind had conjured Klaus up to make him feel better. That was it, wasn’t it?

»Oh, you are awake!« Klaus’ voice cut through the clearing as he came hurrying towards the car. »I was just taking a loo. How did you sleep?« He blinked in confusion at Klaus’ sudden appearance and, as he was right in front of him, Luther reached out to touch his arm just to double check that he was really there. »Hey … you look pale. Everything alright?«

»Yeah … yeah« He shrugged and brushed a hand down his face. »I was just a bit … startled when you weren't there.«

»Oh … Right. Sorry about that.«

»No, it's fine.« Luther huffed. »It's fine. How are you feeling? Any better or still like crap?«

»A bit better.« Klaus replied quietly. »Hungry.«

»Yeah, we should hit the road soon if we don't wanna get stranded here. They said something about a blizzard on the radio yesterday.« Luther yawned and slowly but surely crawled out of the open backseat door to stretch his back and limbs. His entire body hurt. »Jesus … How did you do it?«

»What?«

»Sleep in the streets! On the ground! I feel like I’m ninety or something just from this one night.«

»Yeah, well, sometimes you don't have a choice, right?« Klaus smirked. »I mean … I didn't do it often anyway. Just when Dad was an especially big asshole to me or if I couldn't find someone to hook up with at their place.«

He paused for a second. »You shouldn't have felt the need to go with anyone just to have a place to sleep.« Luther sighed. »I wish I would've been there for you when you needed me back then. I wish you would've known that you could talk to me.«

»It's not your fault, Lu.« Klaus muttered and patted his shoulder. »It's Dad’s. He was the one who messed us all up like this. He was the one who made you believe that you had to treat me like this. But I’m not gonna lie … sometimes it was hard to be always pushed to the side by you.« 

They just stood there for a second and didn't say anything before Klaus inched in on him and Luther put his arms around him shortly. The hug didn't last long but it felt good and Luther felt less empty when they stepped out of the hug again. 

»Okay« He cleared his throat. »Let's hit the road. We have a few snacks left … or we could stop at a diner soon. We have enough money to fill the car with gas again and have a quick meal but then we should really focus on getting to Allison.« 

Without further ado, the brothers got back into the car and Luther turned the heater on full blast as they pulled out of the camping spot and back towards the street. For a while, they just sat there listening to the radio as the radio hosts were talking about the upcoming blizzard that was heading towards the midwest. Thankfully, there would be none of that when they would reach L.A.

»I wonder what Christmas in L.A. is like.« Klaus mused as he leaned his head against the window. »I mean there won’t be any snow, right? Do you think it's warm enough to go to the beach? I always wanted to go to the beach.« 

»I’m sure that we can go to the beach.« Luther replied with a smile. »I mean we have all the time in the world now, don't we? We can do whatever we wanna do.« 

»Now we are speaking the same language.«

»No drugs.«

»No« Klaus yawned. »I know, I know. Good thing we are not headed to Las Vegas, right?« He then chuckled.

»Though I bet we could make a lot of money there.« Luther smiled at him. 

»Really? Have you ever played Poker or Blackjack?«

»No … But how hard can it be?«

»I’m gonna teach you when we are at Allison’s. Do you think she’s gonna happy to see us, though? I mean … you didn't even tell her that we are coming to her. What if she has the house full of guests when we arrive?«

»I’m sure she will be happy to see us regardless.«

»Maybe you« Klaus scoffed. »But me? Nah, Man. She will probably be just shocked and afraid that I might embarrass her in front of all her fancy new friends, right? Her junkie brother … I don't think she would want me there.«

»Listen … I can't … I can't change that, right?« Luther sighed. »And I can't say how Allison will react to you but if you show her that you are clean now she will understand and give you another chance, I’m sure about that. You guys always got along.«

»We used to get along, yeah.« He smiled wistfully. »Only when we played salon together or dress up or something like this. I was the sister she never had.«

That actually made Luther laugh a little. It was just so Klaus to say something like this. »Yeah, seems legit.« He then sighed. »I’m sorry for being such an asshole when we were younger. I mean … when you came out and shit … I was an asshole.«

»You mean the morning when we were fourteen and I stormed into the dining room for breakfast loudly proclaiming that I was gay while I was high off my ass on E?« 

»Well, I didn't know that you were high but … yeah.« Luther huffed. »I treated you like shit after and … made dumb comments. I mean Diego suckerpunched me for being rude but still.«

»I remember … you didn't want to get changed in the same room as me for P.E. after that for a while because you felt weird about it.«

»I was an idiot.«

»Yeah.« Klaus huffed and gently punched his arm. »You were never my type. Diego was always much more in danger of my avances.« 

»He wouldn't even have noticed« They shared a laugh at this. »Not with the way you always clung to him anyway. You were like a koala sometimes.«

»Yeah, Klaus the koala, I remember the jokes. Diego didn't mind, though. It was good exercise.«

»I bet.« Luther huffed. »You know … sometimes I miss those days. Just … us seven under the same roof, happy.«

»I don't know if I was ever happy in this house, though.« Klaus shrugged. »I mean … sure there have been good times, right? But … Dad and the drills and the house … it was suffocating for me. The house seemed so big as a child, almost drowning and now that I’m older I couldn't stand being there because it felt suffocatingly small. I couldn't do anything without anyone judging me or watching me. I couldn't breathe there.«

»I was happy when you were all there, though.« Luther muttered quietly. »And when you had all left and started your own lives… I felt lost. I just wanted it to stay like it always were. I didn't want anything to change.« He felt a little silly to say these things out loud, being so vulnerable in the presence of his brother but, he guessed, after he had killed that same brother, Klaus deserved Luther being vulnerable. Just a bit, at least.

»I know what that feels like.« Klaus shrugged. »I mean, sure, I just wanted to escape Dad and stuff but … when Diego left … When I fucked up that badly that he ran away from me, I just wanted it to all go back to the way it was. No matter how much I hated this house or dad.«

»You never said what happened between you and Diego.«

»It's not important.« He sighed. »It was nothing special. Just the same thing that had happened before so many fucking times only that time, Diego had finally had enough of my crap and bailed on me. I guess he couldn't stand me and the troubles I got in anymore. I got home that day, pretty roughed up from my last _date_ , high off my ass and … I was in quite the bad shape, actually. Diego just wanted to help but I messed everything up with my antics. I mean … he left me for five minutes to pick up something to patch me up and I used that time to snort coke off one of his fucking knives. Wasn’t my brightest idea. Diego was furious when he returned. He just stared at me and then he grabbed his things, put them in a back and rushed out. I guess it was just too much for him, he finally had enough of looking after me and putting the pieces back together. I can't blame him.«

»Me neither.« Luther sighed. Klaus’ look as he turned his gaze at Luther seemed a little hurt at his answer. He couldn't blame him for that either. »I mean … Now that I am in his shoes … It hurts.« He tried clarifying what he meant. Words had never been his strong suit, though. 

»It hurts seeing you like this. I think I’m speaking for Diego too if I tell you that you have always been our little brother and we wanted only to protect you. Seeing you destroy yourself like this, or how you get hurt by other people like this just fucking hurts. I don't ever want to see you like this again, Klaus. I don't ever want to know that some random guy can do something like this to you again.« He shook his head. »I know I wasn't always the best brother, not always been able to show it but I care about you, I love you and I just want you to be happy and safe and not injured in some alleyway. I don't ever want to be called to the police station to identify you. I feel like I failed you, like I failed to protect you when you needed your big brother to protect you. And I guess that Diego felt the same way.«

After a second or two of silence, Klaus moved his body ever so slightly to lean his head on Luther’s shoulder across the middle console of the car and Luther smiled a little to himself. He thought that Klaus might have finally understood it.

**-End of Chapter 6-**


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks to the holidays, traffic was thick and so the brothers were soon forced to make another stop - this time at a roadside diner and gas station in California. At least they were already in California, Luther thought. Now it would only be a few hours to go. He could do that just fine. By nightfall, they would reach Allison. Thankfully, he knew her address from the top of his head, so often had he written letters that he had never sent. The thought that he would soon see her again was making him a little nervous and, of course, his brother Klaus would pick up on that kind of shit. His brother had always been the most perceptive out of all of them.

»So … have you talked to Allie at all since she left for Hollywood?« 

He had last seen her two years ago. She had left shortly after their eighteenth birthday and ever since then, he had only received postcards and the occasional letter from her in which she had told him all she deemed necessary that was going on in her life - As if Luther wouldn't have already known all of that. He was following the reports about her religiously, even though he would never quite admit that. To no one's surprise, she had made it big in Hollywood in the nick of time. 

»No, not really. I mean she wrote me letters and stuff.«

»And did you answer?«

He felt oddly put on the spot right now as if his brother was shining a giant spotlight on him and his bad behavior because no, he had never answered her. »No« He sighed even though it felt very much like spilling a secret or confessing to a horrible crime. 

»What? Why? You were always so close!«

And that was the problem, wasn’t it? At least that was what Luther felt like. His closeness to Allison, the bridge that had once connected them so easily seemed now spiked with thorns as long as his arm. 

»I … Listen it's not that easy.« He sighed. He didn't want to talk about all of this with Klaus. Not right now, for sure. He just wanted to get them to Hollywood so that they could finally relax and regroup and find out what they wanted to do next. If he would start thinking about Allison now and his relationship with her, he wouldn't be able to go through with their plan, he feared. 

Klaus stared at him across the table just as the waitress brought them their order. A burger, fries and black coffee for him and for Klaus waffles and a milkshake. He had always had a sweet tooth and as long as he was eating and putting some meat on those bones, Luther didn't want to argue. As soon as they would start a new life in L.A., he could still get his brother on a healthy diet - maybe even work on his powers so that he wouldn't feel the need to numb them anymore.

»Whatever you say, big guy.« Klaus sighed and started digging into his waffles with gusto. »So what's the plan when we get there? Are we going to Allie’s house and are like ‘surprise your favorite brothers came to visit’ or are we calling her to give her a heads up.«

»I don't have her number.« Luther shrugged and even if he had, he wouldn't want to call her. If he would hear her voice before he would get there, he might not be brave enough to go through with all that. She was probably angry with him for never answering her. She probably didn't even want to see him. And Klaus? Well, Klaus had stolen from her so often that she probably wouldn't want him in her house either. It would be best to surprise her, even though it wasn't very nice of him to do that. It would throw all her plans for the holiday overboard and he once again proved this way that he was the biggest egoist ever but … it was just easier like this.

»Okay, so it's gonna be a surprise. Let’s hope she doesn't have her latest boo over at her place then. I would hate to crash a romantic Christmas dinner.« 

Klaus wanted to tease him. He knew that Klaus wanted to tease him and get him a bit riled up but he couldn't help reacting even though he should not feed those flames. »Well, if she has her latest _boo_ over, we will introduce ourselves nicely as her brothers and go to the nearest hotel.«

»As her brothers, huh?«

»Yeah, because that's what we are.«

»So what about you pining over Allie for years then?«

»Klaus-«

»No, seriously!« Klaus argued back. »I always thought that it was a safe bet that you guys would get together! What happened? And don't tell me something about morals or shit now. It's not wrong and we both know it. We don't share the same blood! All we share is a fucking name and we know how little our _family_ really means, right? You loved her and she loved you and you wouldn't have hurt anyone. So why didn't it happen?«

»Because she left, okay?« He didn't mean to raise his voice or have his words be like a slap in Klaus’ face. Immediately, a few heads turned their way and Luther ducked down a little. »She left and started a new life and I didn't want to keep reminding her of her old life. The thing we had was nothing but a silly teenage romance and that's it.«

»So that's why you never answered her, huh? Was it because she left without you and you felt betrayed by that or was it because you didn't want to make it harder for her to stay away?«

»Klaus, I’m warning you.«

»I just want to understand it, Lu.« He sighed, his voice turning softer as he did. »You never left the house, never explored the world, never even tried to find a girlfriend because deep down you still only care about her and I get it. But if you decided for the both of you to cut her out in not answering her, you should actually move on from this and not stay behind like you have the past two years. Plus, maybe you should have at least given her the chance to make the decision to cut you out herself. But that would have hurt too much, wouldn't it? It was easier to make that decision for her instead of one day waking up to one of her letters where she would tell you about a new love in her life.«

Luther was stunned into silence by his brother’s insightful commentary. In many regards, Klaus was completely on point. Even what he said about their family. They were no family. They had never been a family. The fact that they had all been adopted by the same man, meant nothing. In normal families with adopted children that might be different but they were not normal, were they? Nothing about them was normal. If they had been adopted into a normal fucking family then maybe he would have never fallen in love with Allison because they would have been raised as siblings. But that was neither here nor there and Klaus was right. That was the worst about all of this. He was right. 

It had been easier like this. It had been easier not to answer her letters, to cut her out because he had known that, sooner or later, she would tell him about some guy she had met. A guy that wouldn't come with the same emotional ballast and history as Luther. And maybe their teenage love had been nothing but an illusion, right? Sooner or later, Allison would have realized that. An illusion born out of the fact that they were the only people around in that cage that they had called home, an illusion born out of the inherent need for affection, love, and even romance. It was better to just walk away from it as long as he still could.

He got up from his seat at once and threw the money for their meal on the table even though he barely finished his. »I’m gonna go fill up the car. Eat up. I meet you outside.« 

He walked out on his brother without wasting another second, walking past people that looked at him as if they recognized him. He couldn't stand sitting there for another minute with his brother and potentially have Klaus plunge the knife deeper only to twist it. He knew that Number Four didn't mean to hurt him but the truth was rarely nice and had the tendency to hurt.

Outside, the air was crisp, though not nearly as cold as it would be in their hometown right now. He took a deep breath before heading over to the gas station to buy a canister for their car instead of driving there. He wanted Klaus to easily find the car when he would leave the diner and, after that conversation, he wanted to move and walk and just release some tension. 

He wasn't angry with his brother for telling it how it was. He couldn't put the blame on Klaus just for stating what was obvious only because he didn't want to hear it or because the truth was uncomfortable, right? He was angry at himself for breaking off contact with Allison just because he had been afraid that she would otherwise do it at one point. And he was afraid to be meeting her so soon again, having to explain himself to her when she would, sooner or later, address the elephant in the room. A fine, fearless leader he was.

He made quick work of buying the canister and walking back to the car. Klaus had not yet returned to the car when he reached it and started to fill the tank. He couldn't see his brother through the large windows of the diner either. The table they had been seated on was deserted and the waitress was cleaning it just now. _Well, he probably just went to the restroom_ , Luther thought to himself. That gave him a little more time to clear his head, at the very least. Klaus had a talent to get under his skin. He was more perceptive than most people Luther knew. It was a problem, sometimes. It probably got his little brother in more than enough trouble in the streets as well, this habit of getting under people's skin, this cock-sure attitude, the big mouth he had on him.

Klaus still didn't show after Luther was done filling up the tank and so, a little worried he walked back into the diner. The waitress had just finished cleaning up their table and smiled when she saw him, so he smiled back. »Hey … Have you, by chance, seen my brother?«

She seemed confused at first but then she tilted her head to one side. »He left shortly after you.« She replied calmly and then looked out the window. The parking lot was not exactly huge in front of the diner and to lose a person out here seemed out of the question. »He should be out there somewhere? Maybe he is taking a loo in the bushes. Many of our customers do that, despite the fact that we have perfectly fine toilets in here.«

»Yeah … that sounds like him.« Luther huffed and wiped a hand over his tired face. »Thank you.«

»Oh … Sir … I have a question. We were all wondering, to be honest. Is it possible … Are you Luther Hargreeves?«

He didn't know why but he could feel his stomach drop at the sound of the question. There had been a time, not too long ago, when being recognized had filled him with pride and an undeniable sense of purpose. People had smiled at him whenever he had left the house, some had even thanked him for everything that the Umbrella Academy had done for the city. Right now, however, he just felt a little uneasy and uncomfortable. Still, he gave a little nod as a way to answer her question.

»Oh my God, I knew it! _Spaceboy_ , right?«

»Yeah…«

»And your brother? Which one is he?«

»The Séance.« Luther muttered now even more uncomfortable. »It was nice meeting you … but I really have to find my brother now. We have to get a leg on.« He more or less fled the diner because he had seen the way the other customers stared at him, brimming with questions and possibly wanting his autograph. It suddenly filled him with fear thinking that someone might want his autograph. So, he hurried back outside and walked away from the diner to search for his brother who still wasn't by the car. Slowly, he started to feel uneasy. What if Klaus had run off? What if he had hitched a ride with someone? What if he would relapse?

»Klaus!« He started calling out to his wayward brother but didn't hear anything at first. He walked around the diner but couldn't see anything. At this side of the building, the diner was close to a forest, the other side was open to the parking lot. He walked towards the back of the diner and there, next to the big metal dumpster, he could see his brother, kneeling on the ground in front of another man, just about to open the guy’s pants. He could see the phone in the other guy’s hand, about to either take a picture or make a video. »Klaus!« He yelled again and Klaus jumped back from the other man as if burned, who in turn let out a colorful curse at the sight of Luther approaching them.

»It's not what it looked like!« The man promised hastily and pretty much pushed Klaus back a little so that his brother almost lost his footing on the ground but managed to catch himself quickly. 

»It's not?« Luther growled and grabbed Klaus by the wrist a little harder than strictly necessary. Klaus was an adult. If he wanted to have sex with a random stranger behind a diner, that was his right but the situation left Luther feeling uneasy regardless. Klaus might be flirtatious and promiscuous but why would he hook up with a random guy just like this when he knew that Luther was waiting for him? He doubted that Klaus needed sex so fucking badly. »Because it looked like you wanted to fuck my brother!« 

»Hey! He was the one going after me!« The man responded quickly. »Wanted my hard-earned money! I know a fucking gutter whore when I see one, Dude, okay? I saw the way this one stared at me across the room in there! So, don't blame a guy for going after his needs, okay? I would have paid him well for it too! All I wanted was to get my cock wet, right?« 

»And you wanted to film it!« Luther accused. »Why?«

»Driving a truck means long lonely nights on the road, my guy! I just wanted something to jerk off to! Is that a crime?«

»You wanted to sell it!« Luther growled and pushed Klaus behind him as he approached the other man with thundering steps. He ripped the phone out of his hand, threw it to the ground and crushed it into a million tiny pieces under his foot. »And I would advise you to run now unless you want me to do the same thing with you.« 

The man had gone a few shades paler at this and didn't hesitate to dart away to the side and run away as quickly as he could. Luther, even though he was tempted to throw something at his retreating back let him go. He took a moment to brace himself before he turned around to face Klaus. At least his brother had the decency to look ashamed of his actions. 

»What was that?« Luther hissed at him and Klaus started squirming uncomfortably under his scrutiny. Before his brother could say anything, though, Luther took a deep, steadying breath and grabbed Klaus by the arm. »No, not here … too many prying ears and eyes.« Because it wasn't too unlikely that some of the staff might press an ear against the backdoor that led outside to where they were now. He slowly escorted Klaus back to the car, aware of the people that were watching them through the windows of the diner. He opened the car and Klaus hurried to slink inside before Luther too got into the car. He felt drained, his anger deflated.

»Why would you do something like this?«

»I … I don't know.« Klaus replied quietly, lying blatantly into his face. 

»No, Klaus. ‘I don't know’ is not good enough this time. I told you before. We are in this together and I need to be able to trust you but I cannot trust you if you keep doing shit like this and not tell me why. I am not judging, okay? I just want to understand it.« 

Klaus looked at him with this lost expression he would always get when he couldn't simply bullshit his way out of something, before he allowed his head to fall back against his seat with a deep sigh. »Okay … you are right … you are right.« Well, that was a first. Maybe his little brother wasn't too far gone yet. Maybe he was still redeemable. 

»Okay so … that guy saw us in the diner, alright? Saw us arguing and saw you leave. I stayed, tried to finish eating when he sat down with me and started talking to me, asked me if I was one of the Umbrella Kids and all that shit. I started feeling uncomfortable, so I left and he came after me. He said that he recognized me, asked me if I was the one with the drug problem.« 

Klaus’ drug abuse had become public knowledge quite a while ago, after the disbanding of the academy when everyone went their separate ways. It had been inevitable, Luther assumed, with the way Klaus would go around town doing his thing and being recognized by all those different kinds of people out there. Reginald, however, had never deemed it necessary to do anything about that. 

»He wouldn't stop talking to me. Asked me what we are doing out here, where we are headed, why we fought. I looked around but couldn't see you and I didn't want to lead him to the car in case he was a crazy stalker and would want to tail us, right? So, I said I wanted to take a piss and he kept following me, pestering me with questions.«

»And then he offered you money?«

»Yeah … He … He said that he was a fan and that he had heard rumors about me, you know? About me being queer, about me being a junkie, about me doing anything for cash to get high.«

»Why did you go with him?« Luther sighed as he placed one hand on his brother’s neck. He needed a haircut. His curls were slowly but surely growing out of control. He remembered how Dad had always insisted on Klaus keeping his hair short and told Grace to straighten it. He wanted him to fit the mold perfectly like the rest of them. Gently, Luther rubbed soothing circles into Klaus’ skin with his thumb.

»I don't know.« Klaus then replied a lot more quiet and timid than before as he dropped his gaze to the ground, his fingers playing with his seatbelt. »I … I thought he would leave me alone if I would just give him what he wanted. No big deal, right? It's like he said, after all. I’m a fucking gutter whore. For drugs or money, I did anything since we turned sixteen, Lu. I just thought … what does it matter? One more cock to suck, right? So what? It's not like I would have had any standards in the past, so why start now when everyone already knows what kind of a waste of space I truly am. And he … he just pulled out a few twenties and I thought, hey, maybe I can buy you dinner for that, right? After everything, you did for me … I wanted to be less of a fucking burden for once. I didn't know he wanted to film it.« 

He could see the moisture in Klaus’ eyes even as his brother had his eyes downcast. His own eyes were burning with unshed tears for Klaus as well. He had never stopped to consider what it was like for Klaus or how it made him feel when people would be commenting on his life choices so far. He seemed ashamed of them, hurt even. He looked so small how he sat there next to him and when Luther would look at his brother now, he only saw the kid he once was. The mischievous little boy that never tired to pull pranks on his siblings to brighten their days inside that prison that they had called home. He pulled him closer by the neck until he was able to put both arms around him and let Klaus rest against his side for a moment.

»You wanted the money for drugs, didn't you?« He might be a bit naive at times but by being around Klaus so much these past couple of days, he could now tell when his brother wasn't telling the entire truth to him. Klaus let out an agonized sob at Luther’s question and Luther just squeezed him tighter against his chest.

»I’m such a mess, Luther!« Klaus sobbed against his shoulder and Luther could do nothing but lean his cheek against Klaus’.

»It's not your fault.« He mumbled quietly because he could see now that it wasn't. It had taken him a while, a whole life actually, but now he could see that it wasn’t Klaus' fault. It wasn’t Klaus' choice. Their father had made him like that. Klaus hadn't chosen this life. He had not one day woken up and decided to sell his body for money and drugs. It was their father who was at fault for all that. It was Luther’s fault too for never really noticing how much Klaus had spiraled out of control. He hadn't been there when Klaus had needed him the most, hadn't seen the way that Reginald had fucked Klaus up so thoroughly that he hadn't seen another way to cope. This would change now. He still had no idea how they were going to get through this or make it on their own but he wouldn't give up until they would have found a way.

**-End of Chapter 7-**


	8. Chapter 8

Klaus’ eyes were puffy and red while Luther pushed the rental car along the road. They had sat a good fifteen minutes inside their car in the parking lot of the diner while Klaus had just let it all out and Luther had done nothing but hold him and allow him to cry - to mourn the life he might have had had he not stumbled away from the path in a drug-induced haze, to mourn the little wide-eyed boy he had once been and the potential that boy had had. Because it was a mourning process Klaus was going through. He was able to see that now a little more clearly. The loss of innocence. The loss of an identity beyond the crazy junkie that no one ever took seriously. The loss of self because who was Klaus without the drugs? And when Klaus had finally let go of him, Luther had thought that maybe now it finally clicked in his brother’s brain. This time, it would stick. 

Klaus seemed utterly exhausted the way he huddled into his coat now, his head leaned against the window, the radio playing music that he would have half expected Klaus to sing along with. He was silent, though. Completely and utterly silent. And when Klaus Hargreeves was silent, Luther knew, that he was locked inside his own head and that, after everything he now knew about his brother, couldn't be a very friendly or welcoming place.

»I didn't thank you.« Klaus mumbled after a while. Almost an hour had passed now since they left the diner. »For coming after me that night, for not just kicking me out like Dad wanted you to. You gave up everything you knew and just for me.«

»I would do it again.« Luther sighed softly. It wasn’t even a lie. Maybe a few weeks ago, it would have been a lie. »That night … I feel like I saw Dad’s real face for the first time, you know? I mean, yes, he gave you a choice: go through rehab and stick with it or be out of the house forever. In many ways, I understand why he acted the way he did too. It is his house and if he would have allowed you to stay without changing anything, he would be just as guilty for allowing this behavior under his own roof. At that moment, I thought that he actually cared about you. That, behind his harsh ultimatum, was worry for you that he was just not able to fully show because, you know, he’s Dad. I thought that he just couldn't take it anymore, to watch you destroy yourself like this and that he was hoping that you would choose rehab.«

»What changed since then?«

»I … Everything, I guess?« Luther breathed out in a hollow-sounding laugh. »When you came home that night … I mean, I knew he was watching us through the cameras, that he was listening and I wanted to do what he wanted. I wanted to prove myself to him like I did all my life, make sure he would know that I was loyal and that he could trust me. All my life, I just wanted his love and affection but I realize now that this man is not capable of either because otherwise, he wouldn't have made me kick you out that night. You were badly injured, you were traumatized, you needed medical attention and he wanted me to kick you out regardless.« 

He paused as the events of that night played over and over in his head. He could still see it so vividly before him even now. The pain and fear in Klaus’ green eyes, the pleading look his brother had shot him. 

»So, I kicked you out, like he wanted me to and when I turned away from the door, he just stood there on the stairs and looked at his watch. And I thought _‘This is a test’_. I was so sure that he was testing me at that moment. That he just wanted to see if I would follow his orders no matter what and that he would tell me to open the door and let you in again. A last warning of sorts to you, a test for my loyalty. But he didn't. He just nodded and walked away and that was when I realized that he has no love for any of us and that no matter what I would do, it would never be enough. I couldn't … fathom how a parent would kick one of their children out into the cold in a condition such as yours. I thought, if I would let this happen, I would bury you next and I didn't want to take that chance, you know? At that moment, it clicked in me that Dad wouldn't even care whether or not I would survive the next mission he would send me on and that he didn't care about Ben or Five either.«

»But _you_ cared.«

»Yes.« Luther shrugged. »I assume Dad sees that as a weakness, right? But I … I made the decision to no longer be a fucking puppet for that man. I decided that I’d rather be a brother than a soldier. And I … I couldn't protect Benny … The least I could do was try and protect you. Especially after I already failed you so miserably that night and probably a few more times before, right?«

»It wasn't your fault, what happened that night.« Klaus replied, always eager to soothe Luther’s mind even when he was the one hurt. He had always been like that. Even as a child, Klaus had so often taken the blame for something one of his siblings had done. He had never been able to really see it until now. He felt ashamed that he hadn’t seen it.

»Do you remember what happened then?« Luther asked carefully and immediately added: »I-I mean you don't need to talk about it … if you don't want to.«

»No, it's fine.« Klaus shrugged. »It's fine.«

For a little while, Klaus said nothing at all and just gazed out the window before he noticed how Klaus quickly looked in the rearview mirror as if he saw something that was invisible to Luther. »That night« He began slowly. »I wish I could say that it was a one-time thing but it wasn't. Not even close. I don't remember much about it. I don't remember much of any of the times that something like that happened to me, to be honest. I’m usually just too high to know what's going on or to care what’s happening to me, you know? I’m not proud of it or anything it's just … the truth. And the truth is ugly most of the time.«

Luther gave a little nod, encouraging Klaus to continue if he wanted to and his brother, to his surprise, did continue.

»I remember going out as per usual that night. There really was nothing special about anything. I hit a rave like most nights, said hello to a few acquaintances, got a few happy pills from strangers. I remember one guy putting it straight on my tongue.« Klaus smirked and Luther tried not to cringe at the mental image. 

He knew that his baby brother was reckless with his health and his body. He would never forget that one morning when Klaus had appeared with those tattoos on the palms of his hands when they were sixteen. He had been certain that Reginald would flip the table out of anger at the sight. So often Klaus just did things in the heat of the moment without thinking it through and yet having this confirmed by Klaus, imagining his brother in his tight and mostly skimpy outfits on a rave being surrounded by strangers and willing to just swallow every pill they would simply _put on his tongue_ was horrifying to Luther. 

»I don't even know who that guy was or what he gave me, honestly. Not that it mattered. Within minutes of being there, I was blissfully high and shortly thereafter I was drunk too. At parties like these, there are always strangers willing to buy someone pretty a drink. I don't wanna brag or something but I do have a pretty face.« 

Klaus gave a low chuckle and Luther fondly rolled his eyes. Well, he wasn't wrong. Klaus was pretty. He had always been pretty. _Too pretty for a man_ , as their father had once stated only to inflict further pain on Klaus, as Luther now realized. Reginald had always liked to scold Klaus for being too weak, too soft, too flamboyant, too weird, too different, too gentle, too kind, too much _Klaus_. It seemed unfair now but back then, Luther hadn't understood how fucked up Reginald’s behavior truly was. No wonder Klaus would go to such a place where strangers were flocking around him like vultures around a corpse. Of course, Klaus would go somewhere where other people would appreciate him and give him the feeling of being desirable.

»So anyway, I remember blowing someone in a corner for fifty bucks, right?« Again, he tried not to cringe and failed miserably as his knuckles turned white because of the tight vice he had around the steering wheel now. »And then there was this tall dude walking up on me looking like my next customer, if you will. He flashed a badge, though, and I thought: Oh shit, that's it, now he’s gonna turn me in for the night and I will have to explain to you or dad that I’m a fucking hooker for drug money. And I thought about the scandal in the media. I could already see the headlines, right? “ _Klaus Hargreeves, son of famous billionaire Reginald Hargreeves, arrested for solicitation and drug possession_.” I mean, Dad’s good but there’s no way he would have managed to find a way out of this one and make it believable to the public. And then I thought about Allie and Diego and Vanya and how they would react - or worse, how people would start pestering them about it.« 

His eyes became vacant for a moment, his look far away from where he actually was. This thousand yards stare which Klaus had had as a kid too. He has always been staring into the void, his head in the clouds. Luther, however, was amazed how Klaus, even in a situation like the one he had described just now, thought about his family first before thinking about his own safety. He hadn't wanted his siblings to face the fallout of Klaus’ antics. He hadn't wanted Allison to be pestered by the media about him. Just then Luther realized that Klaus didn't even know that Diego had been kicked out of the police academy. He hadn't wanted the scandal to affect his brother on the job. He had even thought about their father and his reputation. Meanwhile, the rest of them always seemed to think just about their own gain and lives. 

»I left with him. I mean, I didn't have much of a choice, to begin with, right? He didn't handcuff me or shit and when we were outside, I remember pushing him off and running as fast as I could. Well, turned out the guy was quicker. He shoved me against a wall, scraped my cheek open, pulled my hands behind my back and I thought ‘Yeah, no getting out of this one’. So, I started pleading with him. I tried to explain it away, said that it was the first time I did something like this and that I didn't even know that the guy would pay me. Well, the guy didn't buy it, of course. But he said we could strike a deal and I agreed.«

»What did he want?«

»Do you really need to ask that?« Klaus sighed and Luther’s grasp around the steering wheel became even tighter at that.

No, he didn't need to ask it and yet he needed to hear it. He needed to hear it to fully grasp the situation, to fully understand the life his brother had been leading outside of the bubble Luther had spent his whole entire life in. And wasn’t he just ridiculous? He had spent his entire life fighting crime, being a superhero, being confronted by bad people that needed to be taken care of and still, now as an adult, it had never occurred to him that prostitution, rape, and all that nasty stuff really existed out in the real world. Despite the crime-fighting, the blood, and the death, he had grown up so sheltered that the real world had seemed nothing more like a dream, a place where Luther Hargreeves had no right being. And now that his brother Klaus had pushed and pulled him out of that bubble, he had troubles finding his way.

»At first it was fine. I just did what he wanted me to do, right? I went on my knees for him like he wanted.« It cost all his willpower to not tell Klaus to shut up. He really didn't want to hear any of this. He was his little brother, after all. His brother, whom he should have protected. His brother, who should not feel the need to sell his own body for his drugs. »But then I noticed that the badge was fake. I realized that the guy wanted to scare me and that it was all just a fucking trick. So I got back up again, told him that I knew it was fake and that I would go. After that, it's a blur. I guess he must’ve hit me over the head or hit my head against the wall of the alley we were in. I don't know. I know that I struggled and that he beat me. That's all. And then I woke up in that alley with my pants down hours later.« 

»Fuck, Klaus.« Luther muttered but Klaus just smiled wistfully at him. 

»Those are the risks when you live like I did.« Klaus sighed. »It's easy to take advantage of a junkie lying passed out in the gutter. It's even easier to take advantage of a junkie in need of another hit. I mean … I can't even tell you how I fucking lost my virginity, right?« 

Somehow this thought seemed more terrifying to Luther than it appeared to be affecting Klaus as his brother continued like he was talking about the weather or someone cutting in line in front of him at the supermarket.

»I mean I was about fourteen, just started sneaking out at night to go partying.« He continued quietly, lost in thought for a moment as if he tried conjuring that night in his mind. But then he gave one more nonchalant shrug and gave up. »One night I just woke up naked in some guy’s apartment and that's that, I guess.« 

»Oh, Klaus…« He muttered to himself. »I wished you would’ve known that you could’ve talked to me.« Then again, would he have listened? Would fourteen-year-old Luther Hargreeves have listened to his brother telling him this story? »I wished I would have been a better brother to you. At least you had Diego.« 

»Until I was so much of a bastard that he had to run away from me.« 

»He still loves you.« Luther replied sternly. There was no denying that Diego still loved Klaus, that Diego was still out there keeping an eye out for his little brother - not after how he had reacted on the phone in that motel room. A part of him wished he would have asked Diego to come and join them on their trip. Diego and he might have never had a conversation without fighting but still, Diego was his brother too and he loved him just as much as he loved Klaus too. »When we are at Allison’s, you’re gonna call him and apologize, okay? I mean, he stayed on the phone with me the entire time I tried cooling you down at that motel and wanted to check in on you the entire time we were there.«

»Diego has too big of a heart.« Klaus sighed and let his head roll to the other side to look at Luther with a small smile playing on his face. »He’s a mother hen. And his gooey-ness will one day really hurt him.«

»I bet you are right.« Luther chuckled. They fell back into a comfortable silence but just as ‘I think we’re alone now’ by Tiffany started playing on the radio, Klaus turned up the volume and started singing to the song as if they were still just some stupid teenagers having a secret dance party in the attic.

In front of them lay the glistening city of L.A. and, in the distance, he could see the Hollywood sign watch over them from the hills. 

**-End of Chapter 8-**


	9. Chapter 9

They reached L.A. in the late hours of the afternoon when the sun was already setting on the horizon. The traffic inside L.A. was despite the holidays a nightmare. As they drove through downtown L.A., Luther was certain that they would be much faster walking. Klaus was silent at his side. He had dozed off half an hour ago and was currently snoring lightly in the passenger’s seat. Finding his way through the jungle that was L.A. to find their sister’s residence wasn’t easy and he knew that it would probably already be late when they would have made it into the Hollywood hills. 

The sun was sinking quickly now and the temperatures grew lower while Luther couldn't even get down that one road. The traffic into town just didn't move at all while the other side of the road was completely free. Sure, everyone was on their way to their loved ones right now and they were no exception. As he caught a glimpse of a street sign directing towards the beach, however, Luther had a different idea. He managed to turn the car and drive back a bit before he could take a right turn down an empty street.

Not long after he had escaped that endless line of cars, he stopped the rental car and gently shook Klaus awake.

»Are we there?« Klaus muttered sleepily from his seat while he was fighting to get his eyes open like a newborn puppy.

»No.« Luther then replied with a grin and pointed a finger forward towards the beach. »We weren’t getting anywhere, so I thought, why not go to the beach instead?« 

Klaus shot forward in his seat at once. Suddenly, the Séance was wide awake as it seemed. »What? Fuck, Lu! I could kiss you!« Before he could even begin to fight his little brother off, Klaus had already grabbed his face and gave him a big fat and very wet kiss on the mouth. And, while Luther still tried processing all of this, Klaus already freed himself from his seatbelt, opened the door, and rushed outside towards the beach.

Luther had barely time to get his bearings back before following Klaus as his brother gave an excited yell into the wind and the crashing of the waves as they hit the shore-line. He stood back and just watched how Klaus ran towards the shoreline, stripped out of his shoes to dunk his toes. He was like a child for a moment, as if all the bad things that happened were forgotten, a thing of the past. Luther knew, of course, that this wasn’t the case and that Klaus would need to fight his demons for much longer than this but for now, right at that moment, everything was okay and Klaus could laugh and enjoy being at the beach for the first time in his young life.

Everything that they had gone through those past few days was worth it just for seeing Klaus free and happy like this just this once. 

»Luther!« Klaus called out for him and he didn't need to be called twice before he followed his brother towards the shoreline. »The water is so fucking cold! Feel it!«

»Of course, it is!« Luther laughed, amused by Klaus’ childish excitement. »It's December!« 

»No, Lu! You don't get it! It's _freezing_! Feel it!« 

He decided to indulge his brother as he slipped out of his shoes and socks and took a step into the water with Klaus by his side who let out another high-pitched yell at the sensation. Luther couldn't help but chime in. This whole situation was so ridiculous but only rarely had he felt better than at this moment. Even a few minutes later as they just sat on the beach in the sand and felt the sand between their toes like that, he felt at peace with the decisions he had made lately. Maybe for the first time in his entire life. 

The sun had by now completely gone down. They had meant to reach Allison by now but he wouldn't want to miss this moment here with Klaus, sitting side by side in the cold December wind on the beach, _free_ for the very first time in their life. Because that's what it felt like to Luther. He was free, finally and Klaus too. Nothing was holding them back any longer. If they wanted to scream into the wind they could and no one was around to judge them, no Sir Reginald standing watch to disapprove of their decisions or to comment on how childish they were behaving. He put his right arm around Klaus’ narrow shoulders and just took a deep breath. 

Out of all the people in his life, Klaus was certainly the last person he would have expected to experience something like this with. 

»Thank you, you big teddy.«

»For what?«

»Bringing me here. I mean … We wanted to be at Allie’s now.«

»We wouldn't have reached her anyway, traffic was too thick.« Luther muttered, suddenly a bit more flustered than necessary. »With a bit of luck, it will have thinned out a bit now. I mean … it's still early, we can still drive up there and surprise her. And I knew that you wanted to see the beach.« 

»Still.« Klaus huffed and nudged him. They spent another ten minutes before they finally got back to the car and got going again. An hour later, they finally made it out of the thick L.A. traffic and into the Hollywood hills. 

»Our dear sister really made it, huh?« Klaus mused as they were driving past the houses of the rich and the famous further and further up the hill. »A house in the Hollywood hills! I can't deny, I’m proud of her!« 

When they reached the mansion that their sister had bought a little while ago, all the windows were dark as they drove straight onto her property without a problem. There was not even a fence or a gate. He would have a stern talk about her lax security soon. They parked their car a little off to the side and got out to walk straight to the front door. It was Klaus who hurried to reach the door and press the doorbell without thinking twice of even talking about what they were going to say to their sister when she would open them.

Nothing happened, though. The door didn't open and there were no sounds indicating that anyone was even home. 

»Seems like she isn’t even here.« Klaus sighed and leaned against the door in defeat. »What now?«

That was indeed a damn good question. They hardly had any money left. He might be able to gather around forty or fifty bucks from what was left since the start of their trip. With a little luck, it would be enough for a ratty motel room for one night. »Well … I think we should find a hotel or something and try again tomorrow.« 

»Or we break in.« There was this mischievous glint in Klaus’ green eyes again. It was true what Diego had once said. Klaus really was like a kobold at times. Breaking into their sister's house was, of course, out of the question and completely ridiculous, but it was something only Klaus would suggest.

»What?« He immediately shot back in affront. »No! We are not gonna break into our sister’s house!«

»Why not?«

»Because it's wrong!«

»Oh, come on! She’s our sister! She would want us here, right? Do you really think she would want us to freeze our sexy asses off out here? At least in my case, this would be a crime against nature! No, our sister would want our asses to be safe, warm, and well taken care of.« 

Before any of them could say anything else, the front door suddenly opened. At first, it was barely noticeable and then it swung open all the way only to reveal not their sister but their brother Diego, clad in black leather, who just stood there in the dark staring at them. »What took you so long? I arrived hours ago! Allison isn’t even here!«

»Diego?« Klaus gasped, surprise overriding every other emotion he might have felt at the sight of the one sibling he had such a brutal falling out with.

»What are _you_ doing here?« Luther added immediately. »How did you get inside?«

»I broke in, of course.« Diego shrugged as if it was normal, as if he wanted to say _‘Of course, I am here, where else would I be?’_. »We need to tell Allison that she needs a better security system. If I would be a rapist psycho killer she would be done for.« 

»Why did you break in? You can't just break into our sister’s house!«

»Listen, our sister would want my ass to be warm, safe, and well-taken care of and not freezing out there.« Diego replied matter-of-factly. »Plus, as siblings, we learned to share, right? Mi casa es su casa, right? I’m sure she won’t mind. So come on in already.« 

There was not much arguing involved after that as the brothers followed Diego inside. Only as they stood in the dark entrance hall of Allison’s house, the awkwardness truly started to settle over them. Diego and Klaus hadn't seen each other for at least two years and the last time they had seen each other had been plain awful. Right now, they just stood there and looked anywhere but at the other. It was, as expected, however, Diego who reached out and pulled Klaus into a tight hug before whacking him over the head lovingly.

»Hey!« Klaus whined. »Why’d you hit me?«

»What did you get yourself into this time?« Diego demanded to know with that stern voice that he would only use with Klaus. 

»What? I didn't do anything! Lu, tell him!«

»No, no, no, keep him out of it. We’re talking now, Brother.« How much time Diego had spent with their mother growing up truly showed now more than ever. He had once again taken over the role of handling Klaus with a sternness that Luther only knew from a parent. He couldn't help but feel a bit annoyed with Diego for acting like this after Luther had been the one taking care of Klaus the last few days. Then again, that was just Diego and Klaus’ dynamic, right? His big brother pants Diego would just put on for Klaus. »You have to have done something stupid for getting Luther to actually take you across the country while going cold turkey.« 

»I didn't do anything!«

»He didn't.« Luther sighed and stepped between the two remaining even numbers before Diego could whack Klaus again. Affectionate whacks or not, Klaus was still recovering from a lot of trauma and Diego didn't even know half of it. »Listen, Diego, it's a long story and we have a long way behind us. Let’s just … settle in until Allison comes home and try not to make a mess of her place until then.«

Diego seemed in the mood to argue with him but instead, he looked at Klaus again who flinched away when Diego lifted his hands to his face. This time Diego did not whack him but took Klaus’ face in both hands to really study it and the injuries that were only slowly healing. Klaus relaxed noticeably as Diego manhandled him like this. The next time Diego spoke up, it was much softer than before. »You okay, Bro?«

»Feel like a lawnmower ran me over at top speed and then I was eaten and shat out by a duck.« 

»You’ll live.« Diego muttered and pulled him in his arms again even if just for a moment. »So anyway, Allison is not coming back until tomorrow.«

»What? How do you know that?«

»I was bored.« Diego shrugged nonchalantly. »I read her calendar and in her calendar, she had marked down that she’d stay at some ‘Patrick’s’ place overnight for Christmas. So, we have the house to ourselves. I’m guessing you guys are hungry. Sis has like a million bathrooms and spare bedrooms. I mean talk about fancy. How about you guys take a shower or something and I cook us some dinner in the meanwhile.«

»Are you saying you snooped around in Allison’s house?« Luther inquired. He didn't really know how to feel about this new development. Breaking into Allison’s house was one thing but actually looking through her stuff? Maybe that was a little much, even between siblings.

»Are you really surprised?« Klaus laughed and kissed Diego’s cheek with an audible smack. »Just like old times! The Hargreeves brothers are up to no good again!« 

※※※※※※※ 

Two hours later the Hargreeves brothers were lounging comfortably in Allison’s living room. She really had a nice place here in Hollywood. Everything looked exactly the way she would have wanted it. The furniture was light like the walls, huge white curtains were up on the large windows that allowed a look at her lush garden, the plush sofas that were strewn across the room were soft and comfortable, above the elegant stone fireplace hung a gigantic plasma TV, and in one corner of the room his sister had decorated a Christmas tree in purples and pinks. Klaus was currently shoving an orange that Diego had peeled for him into his mouth and already it showed how much more equipped Diego was for all this when he even thought about Klaus needing vitamins to get back on track while Luther thought it would be enough to feed Klaus some random junk food. 

Their little brother had found one of Allison’s soft plush white robes and insisted on wearing it over his boxer shorts while all of their clothes were currently taking a spin in the washing machine in the laundry room. At least Diego had been smart enough to grab a few more clothes so Luther had at least something to wear even though the sweatpants Diego had given him were a size too small. 

»She really has a nice place, huh?« Klaus muttered between pieces of his orange. »I mean it's kinda rude that she hasn’t invited any of us yet.«

»Of course, she wouldn't invite any of us.« Diego sighed. »I mean you, she would know, would trash her place. Me … I’m just rude and generally bad company. Vanya, yeah, well maybe. And Luther? That would be just awkward.«

»Hey!« Klaus suddenly chimed up as he made it over to the Christmas tree without really acknowledging what his brother just said to them. Then again, Klaus had always had the attention span of a Chihuahua with ADHD. »Look! She has gifts for us!«

»What?« Luther asked in confusion. He was sitting comfortably in one of Allison’s plush armchairs and had no intention of ever getting up again right now after a relaxing hot shower and a nice easy meal courtesy of Diego. Right now, as his body started to relax, he felt how bone.achingly exhausted he truly was from this adventure. 

»Yeah, I guess she wanted to send them or something?« Klaus grinned as he lifted one of the gits out of the pile underneath the tree. It was neatly packaged in blue wrapping paper. »Look? _Luther_!« Klaus grinned and threw it over. Luther had barely enough time to catch it. »And here!« He pulled out a package in red. » _Diego_!« Again, he threw it but Diego had less troubles catching it. »And the pink one is obviously for … _Vanya_? Bullshit. Aha! The green one is mine!« 

»Put them back, Klaus.« Luther groaned.

»What? No! They are for us!« Klaus argued back. »She wanted to give them to us!«

»If she wanted to, she would have sent them already.« Luther sighed. »Put them back. We can't break into her house in the middle of the night, raid her fridge and kitchen and then start opening Christmas presents that she obviously doesn't want us to have!« 

»Oh, come on Luther! If she wouldn't have wanted us to have them she wouldn't have put them under her tree!« Klaus grinned as he was already opening his present. His one was a narrow rectangular box and when he opened it, he let out a squeal. »Oh my God! Look! So my outfit problem has just been solved!« Neither Diego nor he could stop Klaus from actually putting on that leather skirt that had been inside the box. He recognized it as the one that Allison had bought with seventeen and which Klaus had always wanted to steal from her wardrobe. 

He couldn't help the smile creeping up on him. Maybe he should take a page out of Klaus’ book and just go with it. Diego was the next one to rip open his present and he too grinned widely. »No way!« He huffed. »The boxing gloves I always wanted but Dad never got me! They even have the right size!«

Now Luther was curious about his own present after seeing both his brothers so happy about theirs. He opened his box and found a snowglobe, now more than ever glad that he had managed to catch the box earlier. It was just a simple snow globe of Paris but he still smiled about it. A long time ago he had been fascinated with snow globes but Reginald never wanted him to start collecting them. It was a waste of time and space in his eyes. Allison had remembered, though. She had remembered his obsession with snow globes, Klaus’ obsession with that particular skirt, and Diego’s yearning for these gloves that he was now putting on to playfully hit Klaus in the arm with as if they were little boys again.

Suddenly, he thought that leaving the house was the best idea he had ever had.

**-End of Chapter 9-**


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it, my lovelies

Luther woke up to Diego sprawled out luxuriously on the couch like a fat tomcat and Klaus curled up on one of the comfortable soft armchairs. They had fallen asleep at some point last night while talking and catching up. Klaus was still wearing Allison’s fluffy white robe. He looked peaceful the way he slept and Diego looked ten years younger as he snored soundly in his sleep - not scowling or frowning for once. It was the first time that Luther got to experience something like this with his brothers and he had never felt more at peace with himself. 

Here he was now, in his sister’s house after they had pretty much broken into her place, far away from home, with no money and no prospects and a junkie brother that was recovering from years of severe drug abuse. 

How the mighty had fallen. At least that was what he would have thought years ago. Right now, he realized that he felt happy. Perhaps for the first time in a long while, he felt happy. It was certainly not how he had planned to spend his Christmas but he would see Allison again after two years, Klaus was doing better and he and Diego had spent last night without fighting once. All his life, Luther had just wanted them to be a family. Nothing more than that. When his siblings had all left him behind years ago, he had felt devastated. Klaus might not have left him but he might as well had with the way he had behaved and acted. Without his siblings in the house, he had felt lonely, maybe even betrayed because they had all started new lives and left him behind in the dirt to fend for himself. 

It wasn’t their fault, though. He realized that now. They had just wanted to be free and how could he ever blame them for that? He too had desired freedom but had been too afraid to try actually reaching for it. Freedom seemed messy and chaotic to him now that he had experienced it at the side of his brother but he really wouldn't want to give it up again. Not for anything in the world. 

The sound of the front door being unlocked made him realize how late in the morning it must be and then it startled him into motion. Allison. They had broken into their sister’s house! For a second he didn't know what to do. He felt himself panicking at the thought of Allison stumbling upon them and freaking out. It would be complete chaos! So, he got to his feet quickly and hurried towards the door of the living room without thinking and delaying the inevitable any further. 

His sister was just hanging up her white fluffy winter coat and had not yet noticed him standing there so Luther got a moment to just look at her. Two years and Allison looked like an entirely different person already. She was as gorgeous as she was in the movies even without all that extra Hollywood glam on and just as gorgeous as he remembered her to be. While Allison was still so unaware of Luther’s presence in the doorway, he caught a glimpse of the giant diamond on her ring finger as it was glistening in the light of the ceiling lamps. There was a sting in the pit of his stomach. Allison had moved on from their secret hiding sessions in the attic of the mansion. She was no longer that fresh-faced girl he had once known and her life no longer revolved around him or their family. Of course, Luther had known that something like this might happen sooner or later but it still hit him like a son of bricks. 

»Allison« He called out softly and broke the spell. His sister’s reaction was to jump in surprise at the unexpected sound in her own four walls. She quickly whirled around and just by her way of movement, he could tell that, if there had been a weapon close by, she would have used it immediately. Hollywood or not, Allison was still a trained fighter after all. Her wide-eyed stare, however, hit Luther much harder than any weapon ever could.

»Luther?« Her voice was higher pitched than that one time she had come across a rat inside the mansion and jumped on the kitchen table with Klaus. Luther, however, quickly shot a look back over his shoulder to make sure his brothers were still asleep. Klaus only gave an indistinctive mutter but didn't wake and Diego, the always alert vigilante, didn't even stir. Luther moved one step towards his sister and pressed his index finger to his lips to indicate her to be quiet.

»Sssh! They are still sleeping!« He whispered. The ridiculousness of the situation did not escape him. He was in his sister’s house after his brother had broken into said house and was now telling his sister to be quiet in her own house after she had stumbled upon him without known what was hitting her.

» _They_ ?« Allison moved towards him but not to hug him but to look over his shoulder into the living room. Before he could stop her, she had found their two sleeping brothers inside the living room only for her eyes to grew even bigger, almost bulging out of her head at the sight. »What- Why- _Luther_!« She hissed. »You better explain to me now what's going on here and- _did you break into my house?_ «

»Diego did.« He replied sheepishly but couldn't quite help the little smirk that was creeping up on him. It was a lame excuse but the absurdity of the situation didn't leave much room for anything else.

Half an hour later, Allison still looked at him out of big brown eyes as if she still couldn't believe to see him here. Well, he still couldn't believe that he was here either. They sat together over a cup of coffee in Allison’s kitchen as if it was normal. Since they hadn't cleaned up the kitchen last night, there were still the plates and glasses they had used in the sink. Maybe they should have cleaned up. It was kinda rude of them not to. Klaus would say something about siblings being supposed to be rude to each other.

His sister’s kitchen seemed too clean and tidy otherwise - like it wasn't really meant to be used like those kitchens from the catalogs. He watched how Allison carefully traced the rim of her mug with one well-manicured finger and looked down on it seemingly lost in thought. Once again, his eyes got stuck on her ring. He had noticed earlier how she absentmindedly kept turning it on her finger while preparing the coffee. A nervous gesture. 

»Well … uhm … congratulations?« He pointed at his own ring finger as her confused gaze hit him square in the face. A faint blush crept up on his sister’s cheeks. For a second there, Luther couldn't help but wonder if she felt perhaps a little uncomfortable now that Luther knew that she was engaged. Then again, this whole situation must feel uncomfortable for her. Evidently, she hadn't wanted them here, right? Otherwise, she would have invited them. Sure, last night and those past couple of days, he had toyed with the idea that Allison might not be too happy to see any of them but he had never truly entertained it as a true possibility. Right now, he thought that it was obvious that Allison didn't want them here and that she had well and truly drawn a line under her old life as Allison Hargreeves. 

»Thank you.« She muttered quietly. »He asked me … last night, actually. It's all very fresh. I mean … I _knew_ he would ask me but … when it happens for real, it's something else, right? Patrick is a good man. I’m sure you’re gonna like him.« 

»You want me to meet him then?«

»Of course, I want you to meet him!« Allison sounded almost scandalized at his question. »Why wouldn't I?«

»You left.«

»Yeah, but I wasn't the one who never answered any letters, right?« Yeah, he deserved that. »And don't forget: I asked you to come with me but you wouldn't leave Dad. _‘I have a responsibility, Allison’_ and all that.« She mimicked his voice with the same playfulness as she used to when they were children only that now the mischievous energy was missing from it entirely. »And now you’re here … I still can't believe it.« She shook her head. »And why? Because Dad wanted you to kick Klaus out of the house?«

He had told her the abbreviated version of events in a hushed voice before they had sat down in the kitchen. As long as the other two would still be asleep, he didn't want to disturb them - especially Klaus. But now, with a sigh, he leaned back in his chair and wiped a hand over his face.

»Yes, Dad wanted me to kick Klaus out if he wouldn't agree to rehab and stick with it. Well, we know Klaus, right? Of course, he wouldn't go to rehab again. And it wouldn't have stuck anyway. But Klaus … You should’ve seen him that night. I mean, you’re gonna see soon for yourself anyway, right? He was injured and cold and I … I couldn't kick him out but I knew that Dad wouldn't have it any other way.«

»So you finally decided to leave.« _Two years too late_ \- but she wouldn't say that. He knew, however, that that was exactly what she was thinking. He could have left with her back then. Allison wouldn't wear this gigantic diamond on her finger then. Or maybe she would. Maybe things would still have turned out this way.

»It wasn't really a decision that I made.« He shrugged and looked down on his mug as the events of that horrible night played out in front of his eyes once more. He doubted, that he would ever forget that night or the things that Klaus had entrusted him with during their journey here. He would keep his mouth shut about all those things. It was not his story to tell. Hell, he had come a long way, hadn't he? Three months ago, he would have freely told his father all of that. »It was an impulse, I guess. At that moment, I realized what all of you guys realized a long time ago already. I was never the quickest learner, I guess. Anyway, we made the plan to come here, to L.A. to be as far away from dad and that life as possible, to start fresh, right? But I told Klaus that I would only do this with him under the condition that he would get clean.«

»Wait a tick!« Allison held up one hand to shut him up, her eyes large again and ready to fall out of her head as the meaning of Luther’s words had time to fully sink in. »You are telling me that you went on a road trip across the country with a junkie going cold turkey?«

»I know, it wasn’t my brightest idea.« He huffed. Diego had already scolded him more than enough for this but Allison just rolled her eyes. »But if I hadn't done it this way, he would have found new excuses or he would have just bailed on me as soon as we would have reached L.A.«

»Did it work?«

»Yeah.« He chuckled. »A few plastic bags full of vomit and a nearly deathly fever later we somehow made it to L.A. last night. You weren’t here though and we didn't know what to do because, technically, we don't have any money left.«

»You left without money?«

»I only had what was in my wallet, assuming that dad blocked my credit cards. Honestly, I didn't even try them. I didn't want him to know where we were or where we were headed, even though I assume that he already knows. I left with nothing but the clothes on my back. Klaus too.«

»So then you broke into my house instead of calling me?«

»I don't have your number and I didn't know where to find you anyway.« He shrugged lazily but he could now see a tiny hint of amusement in Allison’s eyes. He understood why too. In her eyes, this was more of a thing the old Luther would have done. The Luther she had hidden out with in the attic for their secret meetings, the Luther who didn't need missions to feel alive, the Luther who could eat twelve hotdogs without even taking a breath in-between. »And, as I may repeat, _Diego_ broke in. Technically, Klaus and I are completely innocent. One might even say that Diego forced us to come in at knifepoint.« Which his brother would have probably done, had Luther not followed his invitation inside. 

»Yeah, so how did Diego get involved exactly? Last thing I heard of him was that he went to the police academy and that there was this huge fight between Klaus and him.« 

»Remember the nearly deathly fever I talked about? We were in some motel when that happened and I called Diego because I didn't know what to do.« Luther sighed, feeling stupid to recant this part of the story. It didn't make him look like the smartest person alive and just proved everyone right about how stupid it had been of him to make Klaus go cold turkey during their trip. Klaus could have died in that motel room. Fuck, he had died. That was a whole other can of worms the siblings would have to get into. Diego would, undoubtedly, kill him for killing Klaus. »I was terrified.« He then quietly confessed. »I really thought Klaus would die. So, Diego guided me through it. I didn't know that he would come here.«

»What about his work?«

»He was kicked out of the academy a while ago.« It didn't feel right to tell her this but he knew that Allison wouldn't use it against Diego or straight out talk to him about that. Diego and Allison always had had a strained relationship. She was smart enough to wait until Diego would say it. 

»What? Why?«

»I don't know. Dad told me about it when it happened. You know, in his typical Dad kind of way.« He remembered his father getting the information straight from the police academy, huffing and muttering something about being disappointed under his breath even though he had never wanted Diego to become a cop. 

»So what's the plan now?«

»I really have no idea.« Luther chuckled as he wiped a hand down his face. He was completely out of his depths here and it probably showed. »I guess I’m gonna find a job and an apartment for me and the boys, right?«

Allison let out a laugh at this and Luther couldn't help but join in. This whole thing was just ridiculous. »You three living together?« She chuckled. »Are you sure about that?«

»Well, Klaus isn't ready to be left alone and I … I think Diego might actually be the most well-adjusted to the real world out of us three. We need his guidance.« He chuckled mirthlessly. »I lived in that house for far too long, trusting every word Dad said. I was so naive. I did so much wrong. I missed out on so much. I guess it's time to grow up now.«

»In that case« Allison huffed and reached out over the table to grasp his hand firmly with her own two hands. »My house has more than enough spare bedrooms for you guys until you got on your feet and found a place and I would love to help you out. And before you say anything: I won’t just give you guys money because I know Diego would rip my head off. See it as a loan instead. We’re family. We should help each other out.«

He was speechless for a moment. »In that case, we should call Vanya.« Luther mumbled quietly. »Tell her to come. She can play the violin here too.«

»You want Vanya to join us here in L.A.?«

»We are family. We should be together.«

※※※※※※※

Spring in L.A. was like the smoldering hot summers in their hometown and Luther Hargreeves still had troubles getting adjusted to the change in climate and temperature. Klaus too had troubles adjusting as he was always eager to point out around the late morning when he would reach the kitchen with a mop of curls on top of his head, whining how the humidity would mess with his hair. That poor soul.

The most pleasant hours of the day for Luther began when the sun would start to set and a cold breeze would sweep through the city of angels. He was pleasantly tired from a day of hard work at a construction site and his shoulders slightly sunburned from hours and hours of working in the bright sun. 

As he sat down with a beer on the edge of the roof, he listened to the sounds of the apartment just below. He could hear Vanya playing something on her violin that sounded suspiciously like the soundtrack to ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. He could hear the voice of his brother Diego ranting about something he had experienced during his job while he was standing by the stove to cook as he would do every night. He would throw a few Spanish curse words in for good measure when he would talk about his day lately. 

»There you are, big boy!« Klaus’ sing sang as he climbed through the skylight to join him. Not two seconds later, his brother sat beside him in a flimsy tank top and a pair of jeans that he had cut off right above the knees. He called it fashion. Everyone else called it trash. In his hand, Klaus had a bottle of coke with a straw and he grinned as he bumped his shoulder against Luther. These days he looked nothing like the Klaus he had grabbed and dragged to L.A. just five months ago. His cheeks were fuller, his face had more color - mainly because he insisted on sunbathing with Diego at every opportunity he got, being the only two of them who wouldn't burn to a crisp in the sunlight. He looked, dare he say it, good. Healthy even thanks to the strict diet that Diego had put their brother on. 

»Whatcha doing out here by yourself?« 

»Oh nothing, just enjoying the peace.« Luther chuckled and clinked his bottle with Klaus’ coke. »How was your day?«

»Exhausting.« Klaus shrugged. »Working with our dear brother is a punishment for my sins. I get it now.«

»That bad?«

»Listen, since Dee got promoted he’s like Miranda Priestly just with a horrible fashion sense!« Klaus laughed. »He’s shooing me around, telling me what to do.«

»What else is new?« Luther grinned and nudged him. »We all know that you need someone to tell you what to do.«

»True but sometimes I think he’s really close to grabbing a broom to chase me around. He’s a dictator, I say!« 

»Don't worry« Luther hummed. »Soon, he’ll have enough money for that boxing gym he wants to open up.«

»Sure but then he will want me to follow him there and then he starts shooing me around with a broom in his own place.« 

»That's just the dangers of working with siblings. You could always just say no, right?«

»I know. But we both know he needs me and my perfect looks to attract people to his gym.« Klaus sighed. »You know how it is. Sex sells. How will he attract any buff new customers to come to his gym when he doesn’t have a sexy lil’ thing prancing around the place. I couldn't do that to him.« 

»Nah, you’re right.« Luther huffed. »It would crush him.«

They settled back into a comfortable silence again, both sipping their drinks and staring up at the stars. The full moon was visible already as it shone down on them. »Hey, have you thought about Allie’s offer?« Luther then directed at Klaus. »That modeling job?«

»Yeah.« Klaus nodded but there was something wistful in his voice that prompted a little bit of worry in Luther. Klaus was clean for five months now and even after settling in with his siblings, he rarely did anything alone out there. When Diego had found that job, Klaus had immediately wormed his way into it as well, seemingly afraid to find a job alone somewhere. 

»But?«

»Do you really think it would be a good idea?«

»What do you mean? You said it yourself: sexy thing and all that. I think you would do a good job.«

»Yeah, well, obviously.« He scoffed before turning his attention to the side. »Oh shut your piehole, Benjamin.« Ben, that too was something the siblings had needed to get used to first. Now that Klaus was sober, he had started to work on his powers. It had taken a bit of fighting amongst them and for Klaus to make their dead brother visible for them to believe him about Ben. It was a good feeling though to know that Ben was there and was looking out of Klaus, occasionally even hanging out with them. 

»So what's the matter? Tell me.«

»It's just … showbiz … the modeling world … You know that people are taking loads of drugs in that world, right?«

»Oh.« He hadn't thought about that. Now it seemed obvious. Still, Luther put an arm around Klaus’ shoulders and looked back up at the moon. »Well … You are strong. You made it five months.«

»Because I always stick around you guys.« Klaus gave a deep sigh and leaned into Luther’s side. »I wish you were right, Lu. But I’m afraid that I’m not as strong as you think I am. What if I relapse? I don't want to disappoint any of you guys again.«

»You won’t.« Luther reassured him quietly. »I’m proud of you. You could have bailed on us when we first arrived here to get high. You didn’t.«

»Because I knew that I would lose my entire family for good then.«

»That never stopped you before. No, this time it’s different, Klaus.«

»And what makes you so sure about that?«

»Well, for once because we finally are back together, right? We look out for each other now. We never did this before. And hell, even if you relapse … we will figure it out from there. I won’t force you to take that job, obviously. I know it will be hard being surrounded by so much temptation. Just know that we all trust you and will have your back, right? The road to recovery is a long one, Klaus, and the hardest part is trusting yourself again. And, I think, as long as you can’t trust yourself, you are not quite there yet.«

»I don't.« Klaus agreed quietly and hung his head. »I don't trust myself. I still have cravings. I still want to go out there and go to a bar to drink myself stupid or take a few happy pills.«

»The first step is admitting you have a problem, right?« Luther smirked and nudged Klaus again only for Klaus to mirror his smirk.

»Yeah, yeah, Dr. Phil. I get it.« He huffed and rested his head on Luther’s sunburned shoulder. »Will you come with me to that job if I take it? Just to have an eye on me?« 

»Sure.« He smiled up at the moon that was hovering above them. He just wanted to say something else, as Diego’s voice shouted up at them through the open skylight.

»Dinner’s ready! Get your asses down here! Nobody sits down at the table without washing their hands either, Klaus! We were not raised in a fucking barn!« 

With a sigh, the brothers untangled again and Luther helped Klaus back to his feet. »He will never let me live that down.« Klaus rolled his eyes.

»Hey, where did he even learn to cook like this?«

»Oh, for the love of all that’s holy, Luther … don't ask him.« 

**-End of Chapter 10-**


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